


Under String Lights

by universepunk



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire & Related Fandoms, A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Anal Sex, College, Cousin Incest, Family, Gay, Gay Sex, LGBTQ Themes, M/M, Romance, Sexual Content, Straight Sex, Summer Love, Summer Vacation, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-08-10
Updated: 2017-08-08
Packaged: 2018-08-08 00:27:16
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 27,443
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7735909
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/universepunk/pseuds/universepunk
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Starks gather at their lovely vacation home every summer. This year, when Robb and Jon meet for the first time and find themselves tangled up in each other, they must find some meaning in a relationship that most would disdain. College-involved, modernized Westeros fic. Rated Explicit for a reason.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. a romantic light

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own A Song of Ice and Fire/Game of Thrones. The story and characters associated with it belong to George R. R. Martin. I am earning nothing from writing this story but entertainment.
> 
> Pairing: Robb Stark x Jon Snow
> 
> Rating: M
> 
> A/N: Hey all. Thanks for dropping into this story. I've been in love with Robb x Jon for some time, yet I couldn't really write it until I was struck with inspiration all at once and this first chapter just sort of poured out of me. A note, I have yet to read the books, and have only seen the show on HBO. Also, this is one of those stories that kind of unfolds as it strikes me, so I don't know the schedule yet *sweatdrops. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this chapter and want more.

Working a double shift to cover for one of his best friend's "sick days" was the diligent Jon Snow. Jon was a good friend, always lending a hand when he could and often times going out of his way to do so. He was ever the handsome fellow, too, always managing to earn the attention of the locals and tourists who stopped by the establishment. And how could he not? He was a relatively tall fellow with a decent muscular lean that was often exposed by his somewhat tight-fitting black uniform shirt. His dark pants also did his legs and rear end many favors in the ways they gripped his body, especially when he walked. With skin as fair as the winter snow itself, he truly was the embodiment of his last name. His hair hung down in soft black curls all the way to his shoulders, only occasionally tied back in times of unprecedented workloads in the restaurant.

Tonight, his hair was tied back with very few curly strands hanging loose near his neck.

Waiting on impatient and hungry guests under the carefully hung string lights was certainly a mixture of environments. The manager insisted on having the outdoor dining area decorated with them to create a warm and inviting mood that everyone could enjoy. Her intent was to also generate a romantic setting that the inside of the restaurant did not provide.

For the fast-approaching summer heat, there were several fans hung here and there from the main support beams. It was more than enough for a guest who was seated and chatting away or eating their fill. For the employees who were running rampant, however, it was nowhere near enough.

Sweat dripped down Jon's thick brow as he stood at the bar and talked to his best friend, Samwell. Samwell was a stark contrast to Jon. Where Jon was very toned and tall, Sam had some extra weight and was just short of average height. His hair was dark, but short. His looks couldn't turn heads, either. Not that he ever wanted them to. He also wasn't super confident in his skills as a bartender, compared to Jon, who was versatile when it came to this job. In fact, it was Jon who had trained Sam on the bar.

Often, people gravitated towards Jon when the two of them were serving drinks together. Sam didn't mind. They shared their tips, and he wasn't the most confident when people, especially women, came over to him to order anyway. He was perfectly fine letting Jon take the lead, as it meant he could clean and prep and stock the fridges with drinks. He often thought of their roles as that of a tree. Jon was the outer growth that absorbed the sunlight and braved the storms, while he was the root system that held everything in place and kept the system strong.

"Ya shouldn't have covered for her, you know." Sam said mildly as he cleaned some glasses out, avoiding looking at Jon.

Jon's dark eyes turned to Sam and he raised an even darker eyebrow. "If she's sick, I don't mind. Besides, the extra hours will put me at overtime. Ya know I've been saving for university."

Indeed, Jon had graduated high school four years ago. He knew university wasn't a realistic option since he'd moved out here on his own. He'd been given the option to move out across the sea when his parents decided that's where they wanted to live, but declined because the university he wanted to attend was here. So when he graduated, he packed his car to the brim and moved out here to a cozy little studio apartment. This job was an easy get, considering the manager saw it as a beneficial to have a "mostly attractive" staff working. She'd said something along the lines of "putting your best foot forward". It wasn't long after moving here that Jon met Sam, and then Ygritte sometime after. Ygritte, his free-spirited friend, got him the job here, and he returned the favor for Sam.

Since moving out here and taking this job, Jon had been saving left and right to be able to afford the tuition and other costs involved with attending Midland University. It was nice knowing his other family members were somewhat close, namely his uncle, Ned Stark, and his family. They lived a few hours to the North, but the family often visited in the summers. Apparently they had a sizeable summer home in the woods, overlooking the lake on one side and the coast on the other. Given the last summer was five years ago, he had just missed them when he moved here.

"I know. Have you picked a major yet?" Sam asked as he ran a dry towel over the glass he'd just washed.

"Something with art, probably. I'm thinking about sculpture. I've always liked building things." Jon replied, grinning as he recalled the time he appropriated some things from around the house to create a wolf sculpture. He'd always had a fascination with them, especially since it was the sigil of his mother's house.

"You're kidding, right?" Sam said knowingly.

"What?"

Sam set the glass down and gave a look, "You're not just going into art because Ygritte is a painting major, are you?"

"No, it's not like that. You know I don't…" Jon sighed after trailing off, unwilling to keep explaining how he wasn't interested in dating Ygritte. "Cut it out." He ordered as he saw Sam grin.

"Jon, we've got a group coming in!" his manager called, "Break's over!"

Jon looked over his shoulder with his eyebrows a bit high on his forehead. He could see them coming into the outdoor area, being led by the new girl, Gilly. Gilly was a sweet girl. Jon knew it from the few times he'd spoken to her. But he also knew she was quite a firecracker when provoked. While she wasn't a model by anyone's standards, he knew Sam had a crush on her. Unlike Sam, however, Jon didn't tease.

The group Gilly brought was seated in the back. When she'd done her part, she weaved her way through the other seated customers to get to the two of them.

"You've got a table full of college students tonight." She said to Jon, patting him encouragingly on the back before taking a seat at the bar.

Sam's cheeks turned, and Jon winked at him as he grabbed up his notepad and left them alone together.

As he approached the table, he took note of the group. Of them, one of the men caught his eye. This man wasn't far off from a ginger, like Ygritte, or like the cousin he knew he had, Sansa. His light auburn hair was incredibly curly, but seemingly well kept. As he got closer, he noticed other things that he wished he hadn't. His smile was young, his teeth were white and very straight. The beard he sported was short, but thick and just as auburn as his curly hair. It gave him a rugged look, and was a little unkempt like wild grass. His skin was pale-pink, touched only gently by the sun he'd likely been spending time in. The muscles he had were run over by his white t-shirt, and a necklace hung round his neck and ran down the center of his chest muscles. His light blue skinny jeans were almost as bright as his t-shirt, but torn all over.

He seemed to be making the majority of the noise, and much of the attention was on him. His arm was draped casually over a girl with dark hair and dark eyes, the same as Jon. She was enjoying herself, but didn't seem as boisterous as the others at the table. She had fair skin and he could tell she had freckles when he was upon them.

The man's crystal blue eyes found their way to his when he stopped to greet them.

"Evening, how's everybody doing today?" Jon spoke his rehearsed lines. Of course, he had no true desire to know how these loudmouths were doing.

"Margaery, get off the phone." Another guy in the group said loudly to interrupt her call. He was probably the most arrogant in the way he looked at Jon. His hair was about the same length as Jon's, too, but much lighter. He also had blue eyes, but they hadn't caught Jon off-guard like the other guy's did. They were far more tamed and less vibrant.

"Wait," Margaery said, holding her hand up and turning to be less rude.

There were two other men among them. One had curly hair as well, but it was tied back. He was wearing a shirt that read 'Thorns' on it. He wasn't a bad looking guy, nor was the one right beside him, who had short dark hair and a relatively appealing complexion.

"Robb will have the tossed salad. But he likes to toss it, if you don't mind." The arrogant one commented suggestively.

Jon raised an eyebrow, looking the handsome one he'd first noticed over again. Coincidentally, his oldest cousin's name was Robb. Robb stomped the guy's foot under the table and gave him the finger for his comment. "You really are a cunt, Greyjoy." He spat.

"Stop calling me that, you fucking prick! Theon isn't a hard name to remember!" Theon said, pulling his foot back in pain. "I guess a bonehead wouldn't remember it, though!"

"Can we go anywhere without becoming a spectacle?" the one with dark hair cut close to his head said disapprovingly.

"Pretty boy over here is embarrassed." Theon mocked.

"Our house special tonight is the fried pork sandwiches." Jon interrupted, having had quite enough of this bickering.

His outburst caught them all by surprise. Theon became quiet, wearing a concealed smirk. "Go on, Robb. Order the man's pork." He said.

Robb turned to his girlfriend. "You can order first, Talisa." He told her, then kissed her cheek gently.

Talisa smiled and took the menu into her hands. "Can I just have a chicken salad? And breadsticks? For my drink, I think I'll take a large water if you have one."

Jon wrote that down for her, then moved on. "And you?" he said to Robb.

Robb leaned in and looked at Talisa's menu very briefly. "I'll take… the special. Give me some rum with that?" he replied.

"Of course. And you?" Jon said to Theon.

Theon handed Jon his menu before ordering. "I wanna try the steak. Medium rare, and toss in some potatoes with that. Give me rum, too, if ya please."

Jon wrote that down and looked at Margaery, "For you?"

Margaery put a hand over her phone's speaker and replied. "I'll have a salad as well, extra chicken please, and a glass of diet coke. Can I order a chicken sandwich, some fries, and some lemon cakes to go?" she asked.

"Of course." Jon told her.

Her order seemed to catch Robb's attention. "Are you ordering for her?"

"Yes, someone has to. You'd think you would for your own _sister_. She'll be hungry when she gets into town." Margaery nearly snapped, then smiled at Jon.

"Anything else?" Jon asked her.

"No, that'll be all. Thanks, love."

Jon unintentionally let a small smile escape. Not everyone in this group was a complete asshole. In fact, it seemed only the Theon character was the difficult one.

After taking the orders of the other two, now identified as Loras and Renly, Jon gave a smile and assured them their food would be ready shortly, then left them. As he left, he couldn't help but take a brief look over his shoulder, only to notice Robb's crystal blue eyes following him as he went.

* * *

While true, Robb did not prefer the company of Theon Greyjoy, he did admit that things usually were more interesting with him around. Robb was a Stark, of the North, and very proud of himself and his family. He recently entered Midland University, though he opted to take online courses for the past semester to remain in the North. He wasn't quite ready to move down here yet. There were still things he needed to learn about his House, since he was the one to lead it someday. His father, Ned Stark, was the Warden of the North and Lord of Winterfell. What would it look like if his son abandoned him to pursue _studies_ in the Midlands?

Robb Stark was the eldest of his siblings. He was the strongest, the most determined, and much of his parents' expectations fell on his shoulders. Someday he would have to become Lord of Winterfell and Warden of the North and marry a lady to begin a family and continue the Stark name. Robb also had to be looking out for his four younger siblings: Sansa, Arya, Bran, and Rickon.

While his younger brothers only needed brotherly advice and guidance, his sisters were a different matter entirely. Robb had to be constantly watching out for Sansa, who was often the target of romantic pursuers. He'd heard a rumor that the prince of the Capital kingdom had caught her eye, and that simply wouldn't do. The royal prick would never stick his cock in Robb's younger sister. As for Arya, Robb hadn't known her to be showing any interest in romance just yet. Unlike Sansa, though, Arya was very private and careful about her personal life. So much so that Robb wasn't even sure if she was interested in men.

And on that note, Robb himself had some secrets of his own.

While he'd fucked his share of women in the North, and even here in the Midlands, he couldn't find himself satisfied with the idea of settling down with any one of them. Not even Talisa, who was quite ladylike like his mother or stubborn sister.

On more than one occasion, Robb found himself engaged in private trysts with men here and there. He never felt shame while in the heat of the moment. Not once. And he'd been somewhat honest about his open sexuality with his mother and father. Catelyn, his lady mother, disapproved. Even so, she insisted she couldn't stop him if she tried. His lord father, Ned, did not judge him, although Robb knew he would prefer to see a lady on his arm rather than a man.

There rumor about male relationships in Westeros detailed something along the lines of their fleeting existence, occurrence without significant meaning, and morally impure foundation. Most who were of religious background disdained men sharing a bed because of the Seven-Pointed Star—a book Robb was never partial to in the first place.

Perhaps there was some truth in the rumors… Robb had never once heard of a lasting relationship between men in all of Westeros. Even his own meetings had been hook-ups and nothing more. However, he knew this was likely due to the overall association men have with same-sex desires. A man with men was oft seen as sinful and wicked, so who would choose to stand out and declare their love under such harsh pretenses?

His crystal eyes found their way to his friends, Renly Baratheon and Loras Tyrell. Of course, everyone here was aware they were dating, even though neither of them had ever come out and admitted it. The way they talked to each other, often wound up hanging out together, and the little secrets they seemed to share were very telling. At parties, they often found their way off to some place outside where they just sat and talked and drank the night away.

Robb envied them greatly.

He wanted to try his hand at finding a suitable man to date. A proper boyfriend, and not a series of secret trysts that led to nowhere. As for his current situation, frankly, he'd fooled himself into thinking he wanted to stay with Talisa. She was good and kind and forthright above all else, but he didn't see a future with her. So for now, he stayed with her because he did care for her, still. Among the women he'd dated in the past, she stood out and made him feel like none of them ever had before. And the time they shared was generally happy.

But he knew the end was in sight for them… Perhaps she knew it as well. She had been a little distant lately.

Robb was so withdrawn that a gentle caress on his arm shook him.

"Are you alright?" Talisa asked as a confused but amused smile graced her pretty face.

"I'm fine." Robb was quick to reply. He had never once discussed his sexuality with Talisa. Gods, he'd reluctantly done it with his parents.

"You sure? You seem distracted, bloated even. And your face is red." She continued quietly, attempting a private conversation among their group. She didn't particularly enjoy Theon commenting on every single thing. She didn't even understand why Robb continued his friendship with him.

"Yes, I promise." Robb assured her, aiming a toothy smile her way. He truly was a handsome man, and his smile often got him out of trouble. Neither of his parents knew where such cunning behavior had come from, and they still wondered to this day.

Talisa returned the smile and kissed his cheek, "Good." She told him.

When his girlfriend turned her attention elsewhere, Robb took the chance to seek out their waiter, who was sitting across the way at the bar and chatting with his coworker. He observed him carefully, hungrily even, under the warmly-lit hanging lights. His black hair was tied back in a tight bun and was as dark as the night itself. Robb wondered what it would look like set loose at his shoulders. The occasional smile he threw at the bartender was nothing short of beautiful; even more beautiful than his own lovely girlfriend's. His lips were desirably swollen, too. Robb watched him take a drink of water, entranced by the way his Adam's apple jumped up and down as he did.

Truly, Robb had never been so enchanted in his young life.

Jon… Robb wondered what kinds of people Jon liked. What kinds of women drew his dark eyes? In what ways did he like to be touched? What sort of things brought a smile to his gorgeous face? What things sparked his interest and held his attention? What were his dreams and aspirations? Surely, they must have been as beautiful as he was.

His heart nearly jumped from his chest as Jon turned and looked his way. Their eyes locked briefly before it became a little too much for him, and he turned back to his group. Theon was pulling something shady with the salt and pepper shakers, grinning like an idiot whilst doing so. Margaery was still on the phone, most likely with Sansa. He learned long ago not to ask Margaery about what she was on the phone discussing. She'd once given him a forty-minute rundown of information he never needed to know about girls he _would_ _never_ know. Loras and Renly were engaged in a talk about something. It seemed like they were talking about a video game. Gods how he envied them…

As Talisa pulled out her phone and grew absorbed in it, he grew more curious about Renly and Loras. Since he didn't live in this city, he didn't see them very often. He spent just enough time with them to consider them friends, but not enough to consider them close.

Indeed, they were discussing a new title that had been released. He wondered what it was like for them to connect on a level where they could share something as time consuming as video games. Essentially, it seemed like they were best friends and in love with each other at the same time. But that was just him on the outside looking in… They never let on just how into each other they were because they never once admitted to the fact that they were dating.

He hoped someday he could also know what it was like to be so deeply connected to someone.

* * *

"Here you go," Jon said as he handed out the group's food and drink. He made sure to serve the ladies first. He served Robb his food last, catching his brief gaze after doing so. "You folks need anything else?"

"We're quite good." Margaery said with a smile and lingering stare.

"Gods…" Loras muttered, rolling his eyes at his sister before he started to eat.

"Alright, then this is where I leave you. Enjoy your meals." Jon told them, then collected his empty trays and went on his way. This time, he didn't look back. Even so, this didn't prevent him from feeling those eyes on him again.

"How'd that go?" Sam asked when Jon found his way back to the bar.

Jon pulled a glass of water from the other side of the bar and drank from it. "I could be at home relaxing right now." He replied flatly.

"You _had_ to be the good guy." Sam shook his head at his friend. "Just another hour and a half to go."

"Kill me now and be done with it…"

"Got some more guests coming in." Sam pointed out.

Jon exhaled and deeply regretted bailing Ygritte out. He shaped up and waited for Gilly to lead the group to their table before going over to them. Gods, today had been all too exhausting and his feet were killing him.

* * *

Once Robb and his group were done with their meals, Jon swiftly came to take their emptied dishes. He asked them if there was anything else they needed, specifically any dessert. The group had decided on ordering a lemon meringue pie to split, and Jon was off to retrieve it for them.

"I'm going to do it." Theon said as he saw Jon approaching with it in his hand.

"Theon, don't…" Margaery said.

Robb's brow furrowed. He knew what was about to happen, but before he could stop it, it did. Just as Jon arrived at the table with their pie, Theon stuck his foot out and caused him to trip and spill the meringue topping all over his face and shirt. Theon immediately apologized and pretended like he was about to get up to go to the restroom, explaining that was how his foot came to be in Jon's path.

Stuck behind Talisa in the booth, Robb asked her to move aside so he could help Jon up.

Jon refused and got up on his own. His handsome face was covered in white, as was his shirt. Robb watched feeling almost responsible for this. He should have been able to save Jon from the embarrassment, or at the very least control Theon. When Jon took his empty tray and returned to the kitchen, marching with clear annoyance in his stride, Robb noticed he'd dropped something on the ground. He carefully picked it up and looked it over.

 _A charm?_ he thought, confused by it. He'd never known a man to wear a charm before. Yet in the palm of his hand was a white little wolf charm that had fallen off of his waiter, Jon.

* * *

_"Realize I want you. In the strangest way, I create you. But I couldn't dream you up... No I couldn't dream you up..." Persuasion by Sucre_

* * *

Even though the night had been ruined by Theon's immature prank, Robb wasn't completely disappointed. In his right pocket, he kept the charm that Jon had dropped. When he and his friends paid their bills—the unanimous vote being for Theon to cough up for the pie—they exited the restaurant and took to the charming streets of their city.

Talisa walked a little ahead of Robb, talking with Margaery about something. Robb wasn't exactly paying attention to them. His mind was still full of thoughts about Jon.

He pulled the charm out of his pocket and rolled it between his thumb and index finger a few times. It was metal, but felt as light as a feather to him. Though small, he saw detail in it. The wolf's face was well defined and the eyes as red as blood itself. Robb wondered where on Jon this had fallen off of.

As he stared at it, his walking pace slowed until his friends had become lost from him in the crowds of people. He stood in place for a while, then made up his mind to try to find Jon and apologize to him for Theon's actions as well as return this charm to him.

He turned on his heel and hurried back to the restaurant like a child eager to open presents on Christmas morn. Upon his return, he greeted the hostess and asked if he could enter. She didn't seem to want to let him, but he assured her he was going to buy a drink from the bar. When she let him enter, he smiled at her and made his way to the outside bar.

Just before he got to it, he did happen to notice the mess that had been made was gone. The place also seemed to have far less customers than when he and his friends were here.

"Can I get you a drink?" Sam asked, coming over to him.

Robb looked around briefly for Jon, then turned to the man. "Where's Jon?" he said, the sentence coming out like he was looking for a friend he'd known for ages.

"Jon's gone home for the night. We're closing in twenty minutes, but he was involved in a spill and…" Sam paused, realizing he didn't need to be revealing information about Jon to a stranger. "Umm, who are you?" he said instead.

"I…" Robb had no honest reply that would earn him further information. "It doesn't matter. Just let him know we're sorry about the spill, and I hope he has a good night." He said with a defeated childish grin.

"Aaah…?" Sam gave a half-smile, even though he was confused. "Will do. Thanks for your concern." He said.

"Take care," Robb waved and then left the restaurant, passing Gilly, who squinted at him.

He found himself on the streets again, now wanting to return to his friends. But before he started walking, he pulled out his phone and fastened the wolf charm to it. Since he was in town for the long summer, he figured he had ample time to find his white wolf, Jon.


	2. an ironic gift

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I wasn't expecting this update to come so soon, but here it is. Hope you all enjoy it! And don't forget to comment! Thanks to all who have, and the kudos and bookmarks as well. It helps push the story along. :)

As he stood on the battlements of his large Winterfell castle and stared out at the vast lands of the North, Ned allowed a smile to grace his bearded face. The land was fertile and bursting with life now that summer was fast approaching. The weather had taken a noticeable turn as well. The snow had stopped falling some number of weeks ago, and the sky was no longer clouded with dense grays and whites. Instead, only a few gentle clouds carried on under the bright blues above them.

The sun peaked out from behind one just as he saw his wife, Catelyn, approaching from the main exit of the castle. Her dark auburn hair was practically set aglow beneath the natural light as she strolled towards him with that gentle look on her face. Still, he could see a hint of something hidden in the look she gave as they made eye contact. He already knew she wanted to discuss something.

"Good afternoon, Cat." He greeted as she reached his level on the battlements.

"Ned, what are you doing up here?" Catelyn asked with a smile not lacking in amusement.

"Just looking at the sights, Dear. We won't be in the North for some time, you know." Ned admitted as his gaze wandered back to the green landscape.

"Yes, I do…" Cat began as she followed her husband's gaze. "The midlands are very nice this time of year. And we'll be with the children again." She expressed a mother's hopefulness in that last statement.

"Of course. I'm looking forward to seeing them. It's been a bit of a break without the oldest ones being around to show me how much they've grown up. Feels like it was just yesterday we were breaking up fights and sending them to their rooms." Ned reminisced. Age had gotten the better of him, and he missed the days when he was a young father.

"It'll be good to have the girls back, especially." Cat commented as she brought her hands up to hold her arms. "No telling what kinds of mischief they've gotten into. And the worst part is, I can't even tell which one is worse anymore."

Ned let a chuckle escape. "Well, we knew the day would come when they'd marry off. Let's just hope they find good men who deserve them." He said, knowing full well he would have some say in whether or not his daughters' chosen ones were worthy, "We'd best prepare for weddings soon."

"Gods, Ned… Do you think Robb will marry that Volantian girl?" Cat asked nervously. She'd always openly expressed her disapproval of his relationship with her. Robb was confusing the lust he felt for her with love. Yes, he'd told them some time ago that he 'loved' this girl. They hadn't been together for any significant time, so she knew her son was just eager to call it what it was not. Even so, perhaps there was _some_ merit in her ability to hold their promiscuous son down for more than a few months…

"Can't say for sure." Ned replied, pulling Cat close to him. "He'll make the right choice and find his way, though. He always does; you know he does. He's our son, after all. Trust in him."

A sigh escaped Cat. "I'll believe that when he settles down with a _suitable_ bride."

"I think the idea of someone stealing away your first boy has you feeling excluded." Ned teased.

"I'm concerned for _all_ of my children's futures… I don't want them to make mistakes they'll regret later in life…"

"Mistakes are a _part_ of life, Cat. They have to make them to learn. And when they do, we'll be here to support them for as long as we live." Ned finished by kissing his wife's forehead.

Cat took in a breath and leaned on Ned's shoulder "It's been too quiet here without them… I miss them terribly."

"Did you know I found a litter of Direwolf pups outside Winterfell with Bran?" Ned asked, recalling it suddenly.

Cat's brow furrowed. "When?"

"Just two days ago. There were six of them. The mother had been killed." Ned told her.

"And?" When Ned didn't reply, Cat sighed and removed his arm from her shoulder and looked him dead on. "Ned, did you keep those wolves?!"

"Bran was adamant about it, Cat. Rickon, too, when he found out. You know I can't resist my children."

"Gods, what are we going to do with _six_ Direwolves? Who'll look after them and keep them from running rampant through our Winterfell?" Cat asked, then shook her head disapprovingly. "I don't like it, Ned. Not one bit."

"Calm, Cat. I've already decided that the children will each get a pup." Ned said with a smile, as if he'd solved the situation _that_ easily.

"We don't have six children, Ned. Who will take the last one?"

"Lyanna's boy. We'll be meeting him when we go south to the midlands this summer. I'm sure he'll probably meet up with at least one of the children before we arrive in the city, and they can invite him to stay with us."

"So we'll have _six_ children to deal with…" She commented, emphasizing the six very harshly because she had only birthed five children into this world. "Not to mention their respective friends, _and_ those Direwolves… Ned-"

"I'm sure they'll all get along fine, Love. Besides, only Bran and Rickon are still underage. Robb, Sansa, and Arya are adults. Lyanna's boy, too; he's the same age as Robb. We don't have to watch over them like we used to, just enjoy them as they grow and mature. Everything will be fine." He assured, taking his wife by the shoulder and rubbing it to comfort her.

"If you say so." Cat reluctantly muttered, but leaned against her husband, still. "I trust you, Ned."

* * *

A rhythmic creaking could be heard through the halls of the large Stark summer home, coming from Robb's bedroom. It was the only noise coming from anywhere in the otherwise quiet compound, actually.

Robb held onto Talisa's hips as he practically fucked her through the bed. She was knelt before him on the sheets, her back arched and her face in the pillow to conceal her moans and squeals. Robb panted and closed his eyes as he plummeted deeper and deeper into her tight asshole.

"You like it this way?" he said with a grin.

"Gods, whatever you want, Robb!" Talisa nearly shouted after raising her head from the pillow. She felt Robb's strong hand glide up her torso past her breasts to pull her up by the neck, so her back touched his sweaty stomach. And her hair was a mess by now, she could tell.

Robb leaned in and stuck his tongue into her ear as he continued his assault on her. When she gave another open-mouthed moan, his smile grew even bigger. To his surprise, she grabbed hold of his free hand and guided it down to her drenched pussy to have him finger her.

Obliging, he flicked it so skillfully that he felt his fingers wet up in no time at all.

Talisa tightly grabbed his arm with both hands as wave after wave of her orgasm washed over her. "Robb…" she desperately exhaled his name as he continued fucking her. He'd exhausted her and she needed to rest.

"Where should I finish?" Robb asked as he slowed his pace, feeling his own orgasm approaching.

"My back…" Talisa replied, then had to catch herself on the bed after he released her.

"Shit! I'm gonna cum… I'm… I'm cumming!" Robb exclaimed as he pulled out and stroked himself to climax. His sizeable load shot out like a gun and covered a good portion of Talisa's back. Robb moaned and even let a small whimper escape as he finished. He rested on his knees for a brief moment, trying to catch his breath. Soon and without warning, he fell forward onto Talisa, who shouted out in surprise and displeasure after he did.

"What?" he said through heavy breaths.

"Robb, it's on my back! Don't lay down on me until I clean it off!" she told him.

Robb didn't see what the big deal was. They'd wash in a little bit. They might as well enjoy the dirtiness of it all while it lasted. "It's okay, we'll shower in a few minutes."

Talisa looked over her shoulder at her exhaustedly smiling boyfriend. "Is it in my hair?"

"No, it's not." Robb sighed as he rolled off her and onto his back. His thick comforter was a mixture of grays, but his fitted sheet was black. And unfortunately, he somehow managed to shoot onto it as well as Talisa. _Great marksmanship_ , he inwardly lamented.

He watched Talisa pull her hair over her shoulder and crawl off his bed. "Where are you going?" he asked.

"To shower. While some girls might enjoy it, I don't like being sweaty and covered in cum." She told him.

Robb sprawled out and inhaled so much air his stomach rose to twice its normal size, then let it out. It was like this every time they fucked, but at least she was _sort of_ freaky. She didn't let him finish inside her, though, which wasn't _really_ a big deal to him. But he had to wonder if she'd be happier if he did so the mess would at least be contained.

He ran his hand through his damp curly hair, then turned and looked out his sliding glass doors to the lake and mountains for a moment. The privacy that came with having the house to himself for this time was something he'd miss. Surely he'd have to keep it down when his family inevitably arrived. And walking around naked would no longer be an option when such a time came, either.

When he heard the shower start running from the main bathroom, he looked over to his phone on the nightstand. The white wolf charm was lying beside it, still caringly fastened to it. It was a secret symbol of his desire to find his waiter from that night.

 _Jon_ , he thought, and a smile found its way to his face. He'd decided he liked that name quite a lot. It was simple, but strong and assertive at the same time like his was. Of course he _would_ love that name. Now that he'd said it in his head a thousand times since they'd met, he had no choice in the matter.

Despite having just had some very satisfying sex with his girlfriend, Robb couldn't stop his mind from imagining all the things he might do to Jon if the opportunity ever presented itself. He came to the conclusion that Talisa represented a reality he'd become all too accustomed to, while Jon represented a fantasy he desperately longed to immerse himself in.

He needed to find him again, and soon.

Searching at the restaurant regularly hadn't really turned any results, probably because he didn't know Jon's schedule. And he couldn't just keep showing up alone, not with that Gilly girl working. She'd been acting very extra towards him, and even snapped his picture and threatened to hang it on the wall of customers to turn away if he kept showing up, ordering breadsticks, hiding behind a menu, and then leaving.

 _Maybe I should sit at that coffee shop across the way,_ he thought.

The sudden vibration of his phone caught him off guard, and he reached out and picked it up. "Shit!" he said, seeing that it was Sansa calling him. He knew it meant she was probably here at the house, and he couldn't let his little sister see him covered in sweat and cum like this.

* * *

Standing at the front door of her family's summer home with her phone held up to her ear, Sansa remained patient as she called her brother. She knew he was here because she'd seen his car parked in the driveway, so she wasn't entirely sure why he wasn't answering.

Sansa was a beautiful maiden with fair skin, an almost unnoticeable touch of freckles here and there, and orange-golden hair that flowed down past her shoulders like a gently weaving stream. Her icy blue eyes were occasionally piercing when she was upset or displeased, but usually, when she was in a positive mood, they were very gentle. As the eldest daughter of the Stark family, she was the one most people paid attention to. Often times, people referred to her as the 'Beauty of the North'. And of course, someday she would marry. And that person would need to be a suitable match for the Blood of Winterfell.

While headstrong and occasionally very short with people, she was a gentle and benevolent soul who had dreams of love and happiness. She was kind to strangers, giving when she could be, and her lovely smile encouraged another more often than not.

"Sorry we have to wait out here." She said to Jon, "I forgot my key back in King's Landing…"

Jon waited behind his cousin and smiled at her when she turned to see why he hadn't replied. "It's fine."

"You sure don't look like a Stark." She commented. This dark-haired, scruffy fellow wasn't what she expected to find when her aunt Lyanna called her and told her where to find her son. His looks were notable, but somewhat different from the Starks of Winterfell. Though, she wasn't one to talk. She greatly favored her own lady mother, who was a Tully of Riverrun before marrying Sansa's Stark father.

Jon didn't really know how to respond to Sansa's observation, "Umm…"

Before he could figure out what to say, the door unlocked and opened. He was very shocked to find himself in the presence of those crystal blue eyes again.

Robb stared on like an idiot at his sister and the person he'd been seeking out over the past few days. He couldn't even pretend to be paying attention to Sansa, whom he hadn't seen in months, in the face of Jon. He could feel his heartbeat growing strong, pounding as if it meant to jump from his chest and through his white t-shirt.

Standing like a neatly wrapped present on his family's doorstep was this attractive young man, the only thing he'd wanted since they met if he was honest with himself. His bold, black hair was tied back again, to Robb's disappointment.

"Hello, Robb." Sansa greeted warmly when she received no welcome from her brother.

"Sansa, I… Hey, what are you… I mean…" Robb cleared his throat, bringing his fist up to his mouth for a second to do so. "You finally made it from the Capital."

"Yes, and I was hoping to be received with a warm greeting, not a gawking brother." Sansa teased, which encouraged a hug from Robb.

Robb held his sister tightly, somewhat unwilling to let her go. He was unsure of how she came to be in Jon's presence, and he took a second to lock eyes with him as he embraced her.

"Robb, you smell ripe." Sansa said, trying to identify what the odor was. When Robb hastily parted from her, Sansa turned halfway towards Jon. "Robb, this is Jon. Jon, Robb." She said.

"I… we've met." Robb smiled, holding out his hand to Jon. That was normal, right? Shaking hands was _normal_ , right?

Jon stared at Robb for a moment, but took his hand into his own and shook it. He didn't miss the wanting look Robb gave him as their skin touched, or the fact that Robb almost didn't release his hand.

"Really?" Sansa said. "Why didn't you invite him over if you've met?"

"Huh?" Robb raised an eyebrow and looked at her in clear confusion.

"Well, considering he's our cousin, shouldn't he be involved in family gatherings?" the redhead said as she entered the house with her luggage, leaving the two alone on the doorstep.

Robb turned to Jon and stared at him, unable to utter a single word.

Jon looked at Robb with a straight face, even though he still vividly recalled the other night when they'd 'met'. "Nice to meet you, Robb." He spoke ironically, then entered the house after Sansa.


	3. a summer stroll

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for all the kudos, comments, and bookmarks so far! Your feedback is important and really makes this worthwhile, so please keep it coming. Also, songs mentioned often set the mood for a scene (or were just what I had playing softly on repeat as I wrote lol)

The Stark summer home was a beautiful sight to behold, both inside and out. In its modern splendor, it sat carefully placed near a small cliff, overlooking the expansive forest, the shimmering lake, and the staggering mountains on one side, and the far off sapphire coast on the other. Ned had it renovated on Cat's request many years ago when Bran was born so that it could accommodate their ever-growing family. It contained many high ceilings, the highest one being in their living room area that reached fifty feet high. There were five bedrooms in total (including the master), and Bran and Rickon were the only children who had to share. There were also three and a half bathrooms, which was plenty for the family; especially the ladies.

It held many great amenities like a spacious outdoor deck for cooking, a sizeable Jacuzzi, a tall flora labyrinth in the garden just down the hill, a roomy attic that was cluttered with old family belongings, a bar in the kitchen that could prepare both coffee and alcoholic beverages, and a movie room filled with the favorite films of each of the Starks.

Jon had always known his Uncle's family had wealth, but he never imagined they were living such a luxurious life (during their vacations, anyway). He stood in the living room in pure astonishment at the size of it alone. The television hanging over the fireplace was twice the size of the largest television he'd ever seen. He imagined his entire little studio apartment would fit into this one room.

Robb watched Jon's back with great calculation—something he wasn't often prone to. Could he have really been _so_ attracted to his own cousin? He'd done some questionable things in his young life, but adding a cousin to that list was a step he wasn't willing to take.

Still though…

Jon was a beauty without equal. Robb had wanted him, and in spite of all he knew to be right and natural, he _still_ did…

"Jon…" he began nervously. When Jon turned and met his gaze, Robb made his way over to the kitchen island and leaned on it. "I'm so sorry about that night. You seem like a nice person, and Theon is just… the opposite, I guess."

"Don't worry about it. It was no big deal." Jon interrupted, offering a small smile. Sure, he wasn't happy about what had happened, but Robb seemed innocent in the matter. He still recalled how desperate his cousin had been to help him…

While those were the words he wanted to hear, Robb couldn't shake the guilt that ate at his conscious. It _wasn't_ okay, no matter how much Jon would ever try to convince him it was. "I talked to Theon about it, if that helps. I won't let him forget about it until he apologizes to you."

"It's fine, really."

Robb could see Jon was growing the tiniest bit discomforted, so he changed the subject. "Do you live in the area?" he asked.

"No, I just work at that restaurant but live in King's Landing. I have an underground transit system, you see." Jon joked. He could see Robb take a moment to process what he'd said, then throw a resulting amused smile his way.

"You're funny." Robb observed, still grinning like an idiot.

Jon shrugged, "It's part of the package."

Robb stared at the other with a breath of optimism; his mouth slightly agape. Was Jon referring to himself as a person, or was he referring to something more…? "Ah…" he began, trying to keep the conversation going, "Is your hair naturally that dark?" He could immediately tell his question did more harm than good.

"It is." Jon replied.

"I see. It's very pretty."

Jon stared at Robb for a moment, shocked that he'd described his hair as such. "Thank you…" he managed to mumble when he saw Robb's lingering and unsure gaze. Those blue eyes of his could burn holes through stone if he so desired… And Jon knew he would never be able to keep a secret if Robb knew the power he held in those oceanic orbs.

"Yeah." Robb nodded, feeling the awkwardness of the moment. He hadn't really meant to let that compliment slip out like that, but there was no taking it back now.

"Nice place you've got here." The raven-haired man commented as he came over to the island and stood a few feet away from Robb. It was just enough space to be safe; not too close, but not too far away either.

"It was here long before my father was Lord of Winterfell. He and my mother just had it updated when my little brother Bran was born, but the floor plan was this large since it was built." Robb said a little defensively. He didn't want Jon to get the wrong impression about their part of the family.

This place was actually built when Ned was a child to house the Starks of that generation during the summers. And like any sturdy home, it continued to house their family to this day.

"What gathering was Sansa talking about?"

Robb stared at Jon's lips for a second before meeting his gaze again and replying. "Oh, she meant our summer gathering. Since our family is so big and widespread in Westeros, we all move into this place for the beginning months of the summer to be together. Since we don't know how long the summers will last, we usually stay between three and six months."

"I never heard about this until today. But then again, I only recently found out about you all." Jon spoke with a little hurt in his voice.

Robb detected it and leaned in, "I wish we'd met sooner. I always wanted a brother close to my age. Instead, I got two sisters." He admitted, trying to console the other with his truth.

Jon looked Robb over with an innocent little smile. He could relate to that on some level. He wished he had a sibling to speak of, brother or sister, since he was an only child. "Do all you Starks have those piercing blue eyes?"

Stunned by that statement, Robb backed off. He didn't think Jon meant it as a slight by any means. Many people had pointed out his family's blue eyes before in a complimentary way, and he could tell that's how Jon meant it now. It was mostly a Tully trait, really, but nevertheless, he grinned. "Not all of us have blue eyes, no. Yours are black as night."

While he wanted to tie in a compliment to his statement, Robb had learned from that mistake. Most importantly, he was reevaluating his attraction to Jon. Hitting on him with the knowledge of their blood ties, not to mention the fact that he was with Talisa, was not the prudent thing to do.

A brief but charged silence took them before Sansa appeared with Talisa—who was wearing an ill-fitting button down that belonged to Robb—at her side. They were laughing and talking about something as they came into the room together.

Talisa smiled when she saw Jon, "Who is this?" she asked. She seemed to recognize him from somewhere, but couldn't pinpoint where exactly that was.

"This is our cousin, Jon." Sansa told her, "We literally just met him today… Well, _I_ did anyway."

"The family grows." Talisa spoke with a certain fondness that Robb recognized. She did adore their family, despite his mother's fairly obvious dissatisfaction with her.

"Aye," Robb smiled as she came over to him and got close.

"You need to clean up." She delicately whispered in his ear. A chuckle escaped her as she noticed Robb's cheeks and ears redden under the dimmed kitchen lights overhead.

"Right. Ah, Sansa, Jon, I'll be back in a few…" Robb said, before heading to the hallway and then disappearing into it.

"What's wrong with him?" Sansa asked.

"He just needs to change." Talisa replied, sparing them all of the truth. She was a little shocked that Robb would just toss on some clothes after what they'd done and act like it never happened. Was he really that eager to talk to his sister and cousin, or just careless about it?

* * *

With a clean t-shirt and some sweatpants in hand, Robb entered the bathroom closest to his bedroom. He closed the door, leaving it unlocked—his secret hope being that perhaps Jon would walk in on him.

This situation was one he was not ready for, and that nothing could ever have prepared him for.

He wanted Jon so immensely, but wanting Jon was terribly wrong. Also, he couldn't forget that his girlfriend and sister were in the house. He exhaled deeply. The next thing he thought about as he started to undress was what if he _had_ managed to find and seduce Jon that night? Cheating on his girlfriend with his _cousin_? The gods would not forgive him for such a thing.

But then again, Robb had never been religious…

Only his mother and Sansa were the ones who prayed often; though he wasn't sure how devoted Sansa had been on that account lately.

After opening the glass doors to the shower, he stepped in and closed them. Just before he turned the water on, he heard the doorbell ring. While he was curious who had arrived, he needed to clean himself.

Once the water ran hot over his toned form, he closed his eyes and rested his forehead against the tiled wall. Literally everything was wrong. He'd found the person he imagined was the love of his life, but then came another to start occupying his wild, wolven heart. By some cruel twist of fate, this new person also turned out to be his paternal cousin. So now he had to try to rationalize his lingering attraction to Jon…

Though, the idea of being with Jon didn't seem so evil or perverted to him. On the contrary, it seemed quite natural and true.

* * *

"Who's this?" Arya asked as she entered the house with her booksack on her shoulder. She was the second daughter and third oldest child of Ned and Cat. While her sister, Sansa, looked strikingly like their mother, Arya's traits were far more swayed towards her Northern father. Arya's hair was dark brown, her facial features weren't the most feminine, and her eyes were not that strong Tully blue that her older siblings' were, but were instead a dark chocolate color.

Even though she wasn't a feminine standard of beauty, there was something undeniably charming about Arya. Perhaps it was the fact that she was the most free-spirited among her siblings, the bluntest among them, or the most down to earth. Whatever it was, while she didn't stand out for her beauty like her sister did, she stood out nonetheless.

She strutted towards the other in her oversized graphic t-shirt, tight blue jeans, and worn converse, paying no mind to the look Sansa gave her for her very hipster-ish choice in clothing. It didn't help that her hair was tied up in a bun at the top…

"This is Jon." Sansa informed her. "He's our cousin; Aunt Lyanna's son."

"This is him?" Arya said as she approached Jon, looking him over very carefully. "He's a looker. No doubt the ladies will be all over him." She smiled.

Jon grinned from embarrassment, "It's nice to meet you." he told her.

"Likewise. I'm Arya—the _fun_ cousin." Arya informed him, then stuck her tongue out at her sister.

Sansa shook her head. "More like the most uncouth of us all."

"Whaateveeeeer!" the youngest of the group practically sang as she left them in the kitchen to deposit her things into her room. "Is Robb in the shower?" she asked aloud when she got into her bedroom.

"Yes!" Talisa replied. "He forgot deodorant this morning and we spent some time outside in the heat before you all arrived."

Arya emerged from the hallway without her bag. "Good then, we're all here. Now we just have to wait for Mom and Dad to get here with Bran and Rickon."

"Well, they won't be here for a few days." Sansa began, "And I'm planning a masquerade before they arrive, since school will be starting soon."

Arya's face contorted in displeasure at the sound. "What time period do you think this is? Just throw a house party and be done with it."

" _Some_ of us are more cultured than others." Sansa remarked, earning an eye roll from her younger sister.

"I'm sure it'll be a lovely and enchanting affair." Talisa commented, winking at Arya from behind Sansa. "Oh, and Sansa, there are some lemon cakes in the refrigerator for you from Margaery."

Sansa's eyes lit up and she went over to investigate the claim. When she found a little tray of lemon cakes neatly wrapped, she pulled them from the refrigerator and opened it. "She knows how much I love lemon cakes." The redhead said as she took a savory bite from one.

Jon watched the girls eventually start chatting about school and how their summers had been and Sansa's masquerade. He was going to follow them when they migrated to the couches, if only to try one of those cakes, but Robb snuck into the room and grabbed his shoulder to stop him.

"Wanna go for a walk?" Robb asked, his hair somewhat wet and even more curled than it had been before.

"Sure." Jon smiled, admittedly relieved that he had some male company again.

* * *

" _If you choose to let me love you, our love, our love would reach the sky. No bounds, no bones, no breaks, no trials. Just you, just me, our love goes free." – Blessed Soul by Merriment_

* * *

Escaping the girls was a task Robb wasn't expecting to be easy. To his surprise and relief, they sent them off encouragingly. He couldn't tell if they thought it was good for him and Jon to bond since they were cousins of the same age, or if they just wanted any gossip to go unadulterated by male persuasion.

In any case, he was glad of it. Being alone with Jon was a perfect chance to get to know him better.

The sun peaked through the leaves overhead, leaving speckles of sunlight on the downhill stone path that he and Jon strolled together. The warmth of the day was matched by the gentle summer breezes that blew, as if knowing they were needed.

Robb smiled a little. He hadn't felt a feeling like this in some time. A certain sense of freedom accompanied them on their little stroll, mixed with a tinge of butterflies energetically fluttering in his lower gut.

"So this is what it's like out here in the mountains." Jon observed as he looked out towards the lake and forest-covered mountains that existed behind it.

"Nice, right?" Robb said as he subtly walked at the same pace as Jon, ever so close to him. Coupled with the warm summer air, the adrenaline rush Robb experienced was almost suffocating. Having the person he so desired mere inches away, walking and talking and breathing at his side whilst unaware of the tender generosities Robb would visit upon him, was intense. In his pants, Robb could feel himself growing erect with every step he took; and it wasn't a good thing considering he'd gone commando in his sweats.

Jon turned to Robb, "It is pretty nice. And you live here?" he asked. He did happen to notice that Robb was a little close.

Robb quickly cleared his throat and turned a little away from the other. "Ahem… No, I live in the North. I'm just here for vacation. I moved here sooner than the rest of my family because of school."

"You go to Midland?"

Robb turned his head so he was looking at Jon and nodded, "Yea. Well, online anyway. I wasn't sure I was ready to move down here to actually attend classes yet. But I decided to do it this semester."

"Why weren't you sure before?"

"It's complicated…" the taller took to running a hand over his damp curly hair. "My father is Lord of Winterfell. I have to learn from him if I ever want to take over someday. And running down south isn't going to help me do that."

Jon slowed his pace and stared at his cousin through partly squinted eyes, "Getting an education at a good university isn't going to _hinder_ that, y'know. The more things you learn and the better-rounded you become, the better a fit you'll be for the station."

Robb considered Jon's insight very carefully. While that alone wasn't enough to reaffirm his decision to come down here this year, he had to voice his own inquiry. "What are you doing this semester? Why is a Stark working as a waiter?"

After a few seconds, Jon laughed and shook his head. "Because not all Starks are wealthy. I don't live on my parents' money, Lord Stark."

"Hey, don't attack me for following in my father's footsteps."

"Don't make it seem like life is easy just because you have certain blood running through your veins!" Jon countered.

Turning to avoid looking at Jon, Robb rubbed the back of his neck. "I didn't mean to offend you, Jon."

Said man continued on down the stone walkway. "No worries, Robb."

Robb felt a tiny shudder run up his spine at hearing his name come from Jon's lips. He followed after the other, eager to change the mood back to a more positive one. "So, do you _go_ to school?"

"No, not yet. I applied for the semester, but haven't heard anything back yet. I've been saving up for it, too."

"Really?"

"Yea."

"Look, don't worry. I'm sure you'll hear something soon." Robb assured, offering a thumbs up and a smile; like an idiot.

Robb's handsome smile encouraged one from Jon. "You could convince anyone with that smile." He admitted.

Not having expected such a compliment, Robb stopped and stared at Jon like he'd just been stuck by lightning. "I… wh-"

"I shouldn't stay out here in the mountains for long." Jon began as he continued on.

"You should-" Robb hesitated, but followed his cousin again, "Stay for a bit. I can show you the lake if you want?"

After thinking it over, Jon gave in and nodded. "Lead the way," he told him.

"Right then." Robb began, starting up an act as a tour guide. "Down this hill and to the left, we'll find a tire hanging from an oak tree that the Stark children used to swing into the lake every summer." He said as they rounded the corner at the base of the hill.

Sure as he'd said it, there was a tire hanging from a large oak tree at just the perfect spot to swing into the lake. How many times had the Starks played beneath its widespread shade? It could probably tell many tales of the Starks' summer gatherings if it had the means to. Jon could already see Robb and Sansa and Arya swinging from it and making the largest splashes possible. He smiled, partly from amusement and partly to hide the hurt he felt at having missed out on this summer fun all these years.

With his hands now in his pockets, Robb guided Jon along the path in the opposite direction until they came to another area that overlooked the coast. "Here's the beach where you're sure to wind up with sunburn no matter how much sunscreen you wear. There's no trees to hide that snow-white skin under." He teased.

Jon grinned, this time because he was fully amused at Robb's teasing. "I take it you know first-hand?"

"Of course. One summer I was on the couch peeling like a snake because I didn't listen to my mother and father when they said to stay out of the sun."

"What's the point of a beach if you can't enjoy it?" the raven-haired man asked.

"Well you _can_ , you'll just have to wear a gallon of sunscreen." Robb told him. "And even that might not be enough. It's much warmer down here than it is up North."

"Hmm, good to know."

Robb dropped his tour guide act and raised a more serious question, "Are you going to stay with us this summer?" he asked, offering only a fraction of the hopefulness he felt to his tone. He really wanted Jon to say yes. Gods, he _needed_ him to.

"I don't think so." Jon replied. He didn't realize that his words had hit the other like a sledgehammer. "I've got work and maybe even school to prepare for. I can't be lounging around this place…Maybe I could visit every so often, though."

"I've got school, too. I'm taking classes at the university this year, and it's only twenty minutes from here. You can't just act like we're not all going to be here, Jon. We're family and we want you around."

Jon's gaze moved from Robb to the house up the hill. "I guess I'll think about it. What would I do about my apartment, though? What's the point of having it if I'd be here for the summer? And let's not forget that no one knows how long the summer's even going to last…"

"We'll pay for it." Robb offered. "My father wouldn't mind paying your rent if you were to stay with us. He mentioned he wanted to have you around this year the last time I saw him. He really wants to get to know you. All of us do."

"Robb-"

"Think about it. Don't turn me down." Robb implored, subconsciously using that piercing gaze of his to force Jon into submission.

"HEY!" Arya's voice rang from the hilltop.

Robb and Jon turned to see her staring down at them. "What is it?" Robb called, concealing his displeasure about being interrupted with Jon.

"We're ordering pizza tonight! Sansa's too lazy to cook, and Talisa said she might go home soon! Come tell us what you want on yours!"

"I'd better go, actually." Jon stated. The resulting disappointed look Robb gave him was one he fully anticipated. He was already starting to read him like a book.

"Are you sure? You're welcome to stay a while. You can even spend the night if you want." Robb offered.

Jon was so sure he could. He gave a smile and a nod to the taller man. "I'm sure. I'll be back to visit, though."

"What's going on down there?" Arya shouted, "I'm going to order a pizza for you with my favorite toppings!" she said as she entered the house again, doing a little jig as she did.

Robb swallowed his saliva and grew warm all over, wanting nothing more than to keep Jon's company. He wanted to make him reconsider, but it looked like this wolf wasn't going to be joining the pack tonight.

"I appreciate the offer. But this is where we part, Robb. For now." Jon said, holding out his hand.

"Will you visit soon?" Robb asked, taking Jon's hand and pulling him into an unexpected embrace. He momentarily buried his nose in the side of Jon's neck, breathing in his wondrously earthy scent. The way he'd done it, though, made it seem like an accident from the quickness of the gesture.

"I will." Jon assured him when they parted. "Tell the others I'll see them soon, and thank Sansa for bringing me?"

"Of course." Robb obliged, speaking with an overtone that implied there was _nothing_ in the world he wouldn't do for Jon if he asked it, then watched him give an appreciative nod and turn to leave.

Jon did not look over his shoulder as he walked out to his car under the sun-dappled trees. Without a doubt, from the moment Sansa had ventured into his job and introduced herself to him and up until now, today had been nothing short of interesting. He'd encountered a family he never even realized he wanted, and he'd only met a few of them so far. However, whatever it was he was consistently detecting from Robb had him feeling uncomfortable and unclean. And this was mostly because from the very second he first laid eyes on his crystal-eyed, curly-haired cousin, he knew he was a handsome man. Of course, he'd felt a mild sexual attraction to him, but unburdened himself of it when he found out who Robb was.

Still, of the select people he'd allowed past his walls in his life, no one had struck him so precisely and unexpectedly in the way a loosed arrow does like Robb.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll admit this chapter did have me smiling like an idiot at several points after I proofed it because Robb is just such a cutie for his brooding Jon.


	4. persuasions

"So are ya gonna go?" Ygritte asked, staring at Jon intensely from across the table as he drank his piping coffee.

The look she threw his way left no room for any reply but a 'yes'. That was something about Ygritte that Jon wasn't entirely sure he enjoyed. She always wound up getting her way. Come hell or high water, she would have a smile on her face when it was all said and done.

Ygritte sat in her chair with a leg comfortably pulled up to her chest and an impatient look on her face. She was fair-skinned and redheaded like Sansa, but with a fierceness and wildness that his graceful cousin lacked. Without objection from any, one could describe her personality as rough around the edges, difficult, stubborn, and ceaselessly witty. But it was good to have those kinds of people in our lives, Jon knew. He surrounded himself with honest people because he enjoyed a life without lies and deceit; this was also _one_ of the reasons he'd never ventured into King's Landing.

"I don't think it'd be a good idea." He finally replied when he couldn't take that piercing stare of hers any longer.

"Why the heck not?!" orange eyebrows furrowed as their owner's question erupted like a volcano.

"It's complicated." Was Jon's simple answer, just before he placed his coffee cup on the table.

"Let me try to understand this... Your royal Northern family has invited you to a party where there will be other students—students _you've_ certainly never met—and you want to skip out on them?"

Jon sighed, "It's not that simple."

"Help me understand the complexities of it, then." Ygritte said.

"Ygritte…"

"Just what is it you're hiding?" she asked, reading him like a book.

"I don't want to drunkenly _frolic_ around under a mask at some _soir_ _é_ _e_. I'm not some silly girl…"

Ygritte visibly took offense to that, "The hell's that supposed to mean?! It already sounds like it'll be one good time to _me_. There's going to be _free_ alcohol and food! You'd be stupid to not go!"

Jon leaned forward and rested on his arm, then ran his free hand through his wildly curly hair. He'd forgone tying it back today since he was off work. "There's someone who's going to be there that I…" he paused, trying to find the correct phrasing, "Someone who I don't think I want to see."

At this new and irresistible tidbit of information, an orange eyebrow cocked. "Oh _really_?" Her blue eyes were a little wide in curiosity.

"Yes. Can we leave it at that and be done with it?"

"You know we can't." Ygritte smiled against her knee very mischievously.

"Can't what?" Daenerys' voice came as she approached with a large and piping hot latte in-hand.

Jon nearly fell forward on the table. "Nothing!" He whined, desperate to drop the issue. He knew Daenerys' unexpected arrival would only exacerbate the situation.

Daenerys, the young and beautiful Targaryen heiress, took a seat without permission. She was only briefly acquainted with Ygritte, but she'd come to know Jon quite well in the many months they'd known each other. Recently, she was informed that she was his aunt; a secret that had both shocked and delighted her.

Her silver-blonde hair was quite a radiant sight, one that was rare in the seven kingdoms. Most people with hair of this shade had to dye it. She, however, wore her natural shade proudly in spite of the imposters. It went ever so perfectly with her light violet eyes, which gave her lineage away immediately.

While the king, Robert Baratheon, did not particularly enjoy her family's presence in Westeros, he tolerated them because of their close relation to the Dothraki. The Dothraki army clashing with the Royal army would leave immeasurable casualties, primarily on the Royal army's side. And even though he may not have been dethroned from his stolen throne, Robert's people would not take kindly to the misery a war-torn country would invite. Robert was aware of this, and since the Dothraki weren't coordinated enough to rebel or even fully present in Westeros, an effectively fragile peace existed. The king should have counted himself lucky the Targaryens did not seek his head for removing their 'Mad' father from the throne.

Daenerys' second oldest brother, Viserys, was a full supporter of the Targaryen claim to the Iron Throne. However, Rhaegar had decided to keep him close at his side since he was somewhat emotionally unstable and more often than not made a spectacle of himself in public. Some time ago, Viserys had turned on Daenerys and it almost cost him his life by Drogo's hand. Keeping him at his side would ensure his life remained intact.

Daenerys had received some brotherly advice from Rhaegar that they choose their battles wisely. The same advice had been extended to Viserys. An all out rebellion when only a select few supported their claim to the throne was not an ideal situation to dive into. It could lead to the extinction of House Targaryen, which is why he counseled them against starting any confrontations with the crown.

His plans for the future rested on the idea that there was some other way to win the realm; perhaps a roundabout strike from where the enemy would least expect it…

Importantly, the Targaryen line was only strayed from with Jon, who was the product of a Stark-Targaryen love affair. Every other known Targaryen in existence was the pure-blooded result of incestuous relations, and this fact was widely known throughout the kingdoms. While accepted by the other Houses, it was far from a glorified practice.

With all of this in mind, understandably, Daenerys of all people would never judge Jon for the sparks flying between him and his cousin, Robb. Well, the sparks that mostly Robb had been trying to ignite at every opportunity, that is.

Daenerys stared down at Jon, who she could tell felt her eyes on him. "I want to know what you can't do." She said.

"He won't go to the party his cousin is having because he says someone he doesn't ' _think'_ he wants to see will be there." Ygritte replied, smiling innocently when Jon's dark eyes appeared to stare daggers at her.

"Really? And just who is this person you don't want to see?" Dany asked.

"It can't be any of your cousins' friends, huh?" Ygritte piggybacked, trying to narrow the list of suspects. "You can't have met them since you only visited their house that one time." This was a flawed assumption, but not completely irrational considering most students didn't return to the Midlands until a few days before classes started again. Of course, she was unaware that Jon had encountered most of Robb and Sansa's friends already…

It had been a couple days since Jon had visited his cousins at their summer home. He'd received a text from Sansa saying he was invited to her masquerade at the end of the week, and to bring a date—a detail he had not divulged to these prying ladies. She'd been sending him random Snapchats here and there, and he returned the favor every so often. He didn't want to leave her hanging, and she was admittedly an entertaining girl.

He soon discovered that Robb and Arya had gotten his number from her, and to his surprise, Robb had not sent him a message beyond the initial one to let him know what his number was. He was thankful for it, too. He wasn't ready to speak to him or see him again…

Things had only gone downhill for Jon since the last time they'd spoken. In the few days they'd been apart, he'd had an explosively wet dream about his cousin, and came dangerously close to a second one last night. Robb Stark had found his way to the forefront of Jon's busy mind more than once with that curly auburn hair and charmingly handsome smile he often donned. It was all too confusing for him, and he felt a great deal of shame over it.

"Look, I just don't want to go…" he said, trying to dismiss it again.

"You might not want to, but you _will_. And I'm going with you." Ygritte told him very forcefully. "You're not going to be hiding out from your family for some high school emo shite."

Jon sat up completely with a look of pure disbelief on his face. "Ygritte-"

"Who's invited?" Dany asked Ygritte.

"Apparently it's not exclusive as long as you're with a date and have a mask." The redhead replied with a wink at Jon, who was surprised she knew that information. "What?" she asked. "It's a masquerade thrown by a rich Westerosi socialite. I can figure how it goes. And Daenerys, if you want to go, you could bring that wild fellow I've seen you walking around with."

Dany gave an amused smile. "Drogo would not like a party like that." She said knowingly.

Jon watched Ygritte and Daenerys begin chatting away like they were old friends, laughing and relating to each other like school girls despite the fact that they'd shared _one_ conversation in the past. He was about to use this as an opportunity to escape, but Daenerys held him in place by his shoulder. "You can't leave until you spill the beans about this person you _might_ not want to see." She insisted.

"Come on, this is the story of the summer!" Ygritte added. "You haven't had any romantic exploits to speak of, so I need to hear this! Who could be making our stern and brooding Jon feel like hiding under a rock from embarrassment?"

"I'm starting to think you don't trust us." Dany commented, looking at Jon through the corners of her eyes.

"It's my cousin, Robb. I don't want to see him right now." Jon admitted, running a hand through his hair nervously. His chest was pounding and his palms were growing sweaty at the thought of revealing what had been going on between him and Robb.

"Oh." Ygritte breathed out, proceeding to drop the suspicion that the cause of Jon's unwillingness to go was of a romantic nature. "Why wouldn't you want to see him? He's family, right?" she asked before sipping from her own iced drink.

"Because I think he wants to fuck me."

Ygritte coughed uncontrollably and even snorted her drink through her nose. Daenerys stared at Jon with wide eyes.

"Why do you think that?" the Targaryen asked.

Jon sighed. "I don't know… It's the little things… Like the smiles he gives me, the lingering stares, the way he touches my hand when we meet and part, how he likes to walk close to me—closer than you would a stranger you just found out was your cousin…"

Ygritte slammed her hand on the table a few times. "Don't mind me, just saving _myself_ from dying!" she coughed, annoyed that no one even offered her a pat on the back.

"I thought you had that under control." Dany said fairly seriously. "If you'd keeled over, I'd have gotten up to fetch someone to help you."

"I thought you were making a joke." Jon added.

Ygritte grabbed a napkin and wiped her mouth. "Better hope neither of you ever choke, 'cause I'll help the process along!" She warned.

"Apologies." Dany offered.

"Now Jon," Ygritte began, "Did you say your cousin wants to _fuck_ you? Like gut you with his **spear** …? Or let you do the guttin'?" she grinned under her napkin.

"That's not funny, Ygritte."

Said girl hunched, still grinning. "I thought it was pretty clever."

"…All I know is he seems attracted to me." Jon said.

"You'd know more about this than me." The Wildling spoke, looking directly at Daenerys. "If no kids can come of it, is it really that bad?"

Dany blatantly ignored Ygritte, earning a satisfied grin from the other woman. She smiled at Jon, "Do you like him?"

"No." Jon said flatly.

"Well then-"

"I mean, not that I hate him. I just don't like him in that way… He's my cousin." Jon corrected a little hastily. "Sure, he's funny and kind and charming, but… I don't know. It's just weird. He has a girlfriend, so I don't know why he'd want to chase after me."

"Woah." Ygritte interrupted, "This is… new information… Is she his sister or something? Or another cousin?"

Jon's eyes narrowed. "No, he's not like that." He didn't even realize he'd been offering some sort of defense for Robb this whole time. Perhaps it was because he did truly believe Robb was a very decent human being, apart from his odd attraction.

"Really? Because a man who fancies his cousin even though he has a girlfriend doesn't sound like a wholesome fellow to me…"

"He's different…" Jon tried, "He just _is_. He's not some monster or perverted freak. In fact, I think we'd get along well. As _friends_."

Daenerys rested her cheek on her hand, "You sound almost fond of him."

"Daenerys… don't…"

Ygritte shook her head. "I wouldn't be saying this if you gave me reason to believe otherwise, but maybe you should just give in and fuck him. If you find out you like him, make it good. If you don't, make it so bad he never wants to touch you again."

"There's no need for such measures." Dany said disapprovingly. "Just be yourself around him, and open up to him. Nothing has to happen, and it actually shouldn't if he has a girlfriend."

"Jonny-boy," Ygritte called.

Said man looked at her, still uncertain. "What is it?"

"Talk to him and get to know him. I know it seems like I've been teasing, but this _is_ serious. There's a lot that goes to this that your pretty little head can't understand all at once because you think it's 'wrong'. Stop letting other people's opinions determine what you do and just _do_ it. If that just so happens to be your blood cousin, then… give him the ride of his life!" she paused in thought for a second, "I am curious, though. Do you even like guys? I never really hear you talking about any girls you like, or guys for that matter."

"Ygritte…" Jon sighed and closed his eyes, wanting nothing more than to drop the subject. He knew he should have just avoided talking about this altogether. They only managed to make things more confusing than they already were.

But still, it was good that they weren't judging him. In fact, they were giving him pretty positive vibes.

"Oh, and I'm going with you to that masquerade, if you didn't catch that." Ygritte added.

* * *

"Is he going to follow us all bloody day?" A slightly irked Loras whispered to Renly as the two of them strolled the sidewalks of the charming downtown district. He took a peek over his shoulder and watched an unsuspecting Robb stuff a few nachos into his mouth before turning back to Renly.

Renly shrugged and looked back as well, but only for a second. "I don't know, but I'm sure we can lose him if we take just tell him we need to be alone. It's _our_ date, not us wanting to get the gang together."

Truly, coming downtown today was the perfect thing to do, especially for a date. The area was just meant for it. The air was quite forgiving, considering summer was beginning to unfold. The sky was blue and filled with clouds lazing their way through it. There were people all around, shopping, eating, and simply engaging each other in lively conversation. It was lunchtime so the various and savory smells of food hung heavily in the air from the restaurants.

Along the second floors of many of the buildings, window boxes with lush little gardens were carefully placed. The wind blew and carried some of the flower petals through the air and rustled the trees lining the sidewalks as well. It was a very ideal place to bring that special someone for a delightful afternoon together.

Loras let a sigh escape in response to Renly, "Look, I didn't even _want_ to go out to lunch today, so this is what you get… Your plans have been utterly dashed by our Stark playmate." he admitted, salting the fresh wound.

Appalled, the Baratheon prince slowed his pace and let his expression convey his hurt and confusion. " _Excuse me_ for trying to do something with you besides fucking and lounging around the house and gardens all day! If you didn't want to spend the summer together, you should have said so. I would gladly go back to King's Land-"

"Alright, alright! I'm sorry!" Loras apologized hurriedly, wanting nothing more than to keep Renly happy. His voice was rising beyond what was appropriate for a whispered aside now… When his gallant prince got into one of his fits, he was far harder to calm than Loras ever was. This, he assumed, was likely due to Renly's second-natured habit of keeping his emotions more swayed towards kindness and charm, rather than letting his anger out for anything more than short bursts.

He certainly was cute when he was venting, though.

Renly took in a few breaths and clamed himself before speaking again. It was unbecoming of a prince to throw a tantrum, after all. "Well, the damage is done now. Let's just go back to the house and _relax_." He said, passive aggressiveness not really lacking in his tone.

Loras cleared his throat, "We can't with _him_ following us." He motioned back over his shoulder with his eyes.

Both men turned and took a look at Robb, who licked his fingers clean of nacho cheese and caught them staring as he did. He licked his fingers slower, unsure of what he'd done wrong.

"Robb, what _are_ you doing today?" Renly asked.

After chewing his food up quickly, Robb replied. "I was thinking we could hang out." He said with a smile. He was such a sweet yet naive young man; too unaware of the fact that he'd long since become a third wheel today.

"Aren't your siblings in town now? And your cousin?" Loras questioned, his tone subtly implying that Robb _should_ have wanted to be spending time with them instead.

"Aye, but I thought I might spend time with you two. I have something important I'd like to talk to you about."

Loras squinted, "Wha-"

"Go on." Renly interrupted.

Robb finished off his nachos before dropping the now-emptied paper tray into a trash bin hanging on one of the streetlights. He licked his fingers clean and then wiped them on his pants. Both Renly and Loras quivered at the sight.

"What?" the Stark child said, eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"When was the last time you washed your hands?" Renly asked.

"More like when was the list time he showered…?" Loras mumbled. While Robb didn't smell, it was easier to assume he didn't shower because of his Northern appearance.

"You two are very cute together." Robb countered, making both of them become noticeably embarrassed.

" _Together_ …? Come off it, Robb." Renly said with a fake chuckle.

The three of them started on down the sidewalk again under the sun for a moment, then when they were away from prying ears, Robb spoke again. "I like someone." He confessed.

"Yes, we're all quite aware you have a girlfriend." Loras rolled his eyes. "You never cease to shut up about her. And I've seen you grope her enough to know she probably gets no rest around you. Just marry the girl already..."

"It's…" Robb paused and contemplated revealing his secret, "It's someone else." He settled on admitting.

Whatever interest either of the other men had lost in him today was reignited tenfold. They both came to a halt and stared at him.

"Well now, this is juicy." Renly couldn't easily contain his excitement on this scandalous news.

"Who is it?" Loras asked.

"I'll have to keep that secret for now." Robb told them, "But…"

"But…?" the other two said in unison.

After spotting a quiet table to sit at under the spotted shade of a tree, Robb led the two eager men to it and took a seat. Once they sat down, he spoke again, "What would you two say if I told you that I was interested in men?"

Renly's jaw dropped and his eyes grew wide in shock, "I never would have guessed you of all people were interested in men!" He whispered very strongly.

"I knew it." Loras chimed.

Robb and Renly stared at him in disbelief.

"And you never thought to tell me?!" Renly was clearly deeply hurt by this.

"It never really came up." The Tyrell heir shrugged and got comfortable in his chair. He let his gaze turn from Renly back to Robb, "What? It was obvious you were sleeping around before Talisa… And you always were flirty. Besides, I can just tell these things at this point."

Robb moved so he was leaning on the table. "Have you told anyone?"

"No, I'm not interested in outing you or anyone else. I liked watching you pretend you only liked women, and subtly check out men when you thought no one was looking. It was amusing."

"My life isn't a joke, Loras." Robb grew so serious Loras had no choice but to look away.

"Jeez, I'm sorry…"

Ever the people pleaser, Renly cut the tension, "Well, getting back to the topic at hand… Robb, care to tell us who you're wooing?"

The Stark child looked out to the buildings off in the distance that dared to touch the bright blue sky. He felt his heart unapologetically thrashing against his chest. His oceanic eyes returned to the two briefly, before staring down at the table. "I can't say."

Renly was not satisfied. "Weeeell… What are you going to do about Talisa? Have you told her?"

"No. I don't know what to do. I wanted to talk to you two about it. I figured you'd understand."

"Understand what?" Loras said.

"The gay stuff. Dating and things like that."

Robb's words took both men by surprise, and they quickly tried to play it off like what he was implying was a laughable thing.

Loras spoke through his fake laughter. "You've got it all wrong. We're not-"

"We all know you are." Robb interrupted, "It's old news."

"Margaery!" the young Tyrell slammed his fist down onto the table.

"Actually, she didn't say a thing; didn't need to, either. We all just figured it out after a while."

"Everybody knows?" Renly asked.

Robb scratched his bearded chin for a second. "I can't speak for the general public, but our friends all know." He told them.

"Wish everybody would just mind their own damned business." Loras grumbled.

Feeling somewhat guilty, Robb averted his gaze to the ground. "I guess I shouldn't have brought this up at all…"

"No, no! It's good that you did." Renly assured him. "At least now we don't have to hide it from them…"

"Soooo…" Robb began nervously, "How should I approach him about it?"

"Don't." Loras said flatly. "You're in a relationship."

"…" Renly had his own opinion on the matter. "Robb, if you feel like you're not happy with Talisa, maybe you should break up with her." He noticed Robb didn't take well to that idea, "Or… you could just confess to the other person and see how it goes. Don't do anything crazy, just let him know you're interested and you need to work things out with your girlfriend before you can act on that interest."

"Is this someone you'd even want to date? Or are you just looking for a quick fuck?" Loras asked when he saw Robb considering Renly's advice.

"I _don't_ want to just fuck him. He's nice and very pretty and I feel like I would relate to him on a lot of things. I spent the afternoon with him once and we were just talking… and it felt so good, natural even, to have him by my side."

"Aww, Loras, he's blushing!" Renly called out.

Robb started peeling at the wood on the table a little. "Come on…" he said, unable to conceal his embarrassment.

Loras was growing surprisingly interested in this situation. "When will you see him again?" he asked.

"I don't know. Soon, I hope."

A bit unsatisfied, he continued. "When did you see him last?"

"A few days ago…"

"Where?" Renly asked.

"He visited our house."

The Baratheon's eyes narrowed a little, "The Stark summer house?"

"Yea."

"…Hmm…"

"Did you invite him to Sansa's masquerade?" Loras asked. "If Talisa's not going to be there, it's the perfect chance to slip him the old _Northern_ charm." He teased. His facetiousness didn't sit too well with the heir to Winterfell, and his smile soon disappeared when he noticed this.

"I'm done here." Robb said as he got up and started on his way away from the two. "Enjoy your date!" He called loudly, knowing they'd be embarrassed even though there weren't many people in the area.

Once he'd put a few blocks between himself and the two of them, he sighed and wondered what he could do. The masquerade was tomorrow night so long as his parents didn't arrive from the North by then. He really wanted to spend that time with Jon, but Talisa would surely want to go with him. He couldn't tell her he wasn't going. He never wanted to lie to her.

Just as he considered shooting Jon a message, he felt his phone vibrating in his pocket. After pulling it out, he saw that it was Sansa calling.

"Hello?" he said after answering.

" _Hey Robb, can you do me huge a favor?"_ the girl replied.

"Sure."

" _I sent Arya into town for some party favors and for the cake. I forgot to ask her to pick up some decorations, though. Can you do that for me? She left her phone here on the couch so I can't get in touch with her. I'd do it myself, but I'm cleaning everything up. There's so much dust everywhere."_ The summer house hadn't been visited in a number of months, and Robb _should_ have been the one to clean it since he arrived first.

"I can do it. What do you need exactly?"

" _An assortment of flowers I ordered. It's big so you'll need to be careful with it when putting it in your car."_

"Is that it?"

" _No, I need at least fifty beige taper candles, balloons—but only maroon, gray, beige, and black… and umm…"_ a sound of rustling paper echoed before she spoke again, _"Amory's string lights, the white kind."_

"Anything else?"

" _No, but did you get all that?"_

"Yes."

" _Repeat it to me."_

"Your flowers, stick candles-"

" _Beige taper."_ Sansa corrected.

Robb sighed, " _Maroon, gray, beige, and black_ balloons, and _Amory's_ _white_ string lights." He specified.

" _Thank you, Robb. If you can't find string lights, it's okay. They're only going in the garden labyrinth."_

"Alright. If I run into Arya, I'll tell her you said she's better at life than you." Robb told her with a grin.

" _As if I'd say that."_ Sansa said, then sighed, _"Well hurry back. You don't want to miss the cleaning."_

"Riiight…" Robb said, then hung up the phone.

The thought to send Jon a message came back to him, but he saw that he had a message already. It was a message from Talisa saying they needed to talk, and it was urgent.


	5. late arrivals

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for the comments, bookmarks, and kudos so far, you all!

Ever since he'd come home yesterday with the supplies that Sansa had requested, the Stark girls noticed their older brother seemed very detached and distracted. He hadn't said much to them when he got back to the house. He only handed off the decorations and insisted he needed to be alone, then locked himself away in his room for the remainder of the evening.

Even when they whipped up some dinner, which they both were sure smelled throughout the house, he hadn't come out to eat. And Robb wasn't usually one to turn down food.

The night ended without either of them laying eyes on him until the next morning.

Robb tiredly scratched his curly, messy head of hair as he entered the kitchen and pulled an old box of cereal from the pantry. After filling a bowl with it, he pulled the milk from the fridge and sniffed it several times before pouring it over the cereal.

Arya took this chance to turn down the television and speak to her brother.

"Morning, Robb." She said, offering little to no caution to whatever may have been going on with him.

"Good morning." Robb told her, looking up from his cereal.

"You do realize that cereal's been in there for like, over a year now, right?" she grinned.

Robb gave a look of exhaustion; his mouth hung open like a fish. "I'm hungry." Was the only defense he had for eating it.

"Your funeral." The girl joked.

After scarfing down a few spoonfuls of his breakfast, Robb spoke again. "Where's Sansa?"

"She's outside in the labyrinth hanging the lights. I don't know why, though. No one's gonna go down there."

Oceanic eyes stared down at the cereal that was already turning soggy. Robb felt a great deal of guilt at hearing that. He hadn't really helped out at all, even though this _was_ Sansa's party. Truly, he had every intention of helping her when he returned from town yesterday. However, things with Talisa had become unexpectedly… strained.

The front door flew open, practically carrying Sansa into the foyer on the early summer winds. The young beauty dusted off her tank top and billowy shorts and headed to the kitchen. She stopped when she saw Robb standing at the island, eating a bowl of the old cereal.

"Good morning, Robb." She said just before grabbing a glass from the cabinet.

Robb watched her fill it with filtered water and greeted his sister, "Hey Sansa." He said. After hesitating for a second, he spoke again. "I'm sorry I haven't really been able to help you."

Sansa drank the water for a second, then replied. "It's fine. The place looks really nice. If you want something done right, you have to do it yourself. That's what Father always says." she said, then made her way into the living room to take a seat on the couch opposite their little sister. "What happened yesterday? You seemed fine when we talked on the phone…"

Robb picked up his bowl and came into the living room to sit with the girls. "I had a fight with Talisa." He said sourly.

"About what?" Arya asked.

The eldest Stark child sighed. "I didn't know what to do… When I met up with her, she was in tears. She eventually managed to tell me her father had become ill and she needed to go back to Volantis to look after him for a while."

Sansa offered a concerned reply, "Is he okay? And… I mean, even if he _is_ sick, class is starting in less than a week… Is Talisa going to skip out on them?"

"That's what I said!" Robb basically blurted out, "She didn't want to hear it, though. She said family was more important than classes, and told me she didn't care if she was late for classes this semester. He just had a slight case of pneumonia and was hospitalized, but she told me he was stable."

"Can she transfer to a university in Volantis?" Sansa asked.

"The program she's in here has an accelerated curriculum, which is why she's studying at Midland. If she studied back there, she'd be in school for another four years on top of the three she already completed. Here, she can finish in just two more."

"Bummer." Arya commented.

"Ah… Wait. So why were _you_ upset?" Sansa inquired.

Robb shook his head and stared down at the remainder of his cereal that he knew he wasn't going to finish. "Because she asked if I would go with her for a few days, but I told her I needed to stay here."

"You could've gone for a day or two. Mother and Father wouldn't be upset." Arya assured him.

"Well, _Father_ wouldn't." Sansa corrected.

"Why do you need to stay here?" Arya raised a good question.

Robb could not reply right away. He sat back on the couch and blew a puff of air. "I didn't want to go to Volantis. Not this close to classes starting."

While this was nothing short of the truth, he neglected to mention his unending thirst for Jon. Though, that was only a factor in his decision; arguably the most important one, but still only one of many. Robb had met Talisa's parents _once_. She told him her father was sick and insisted he be there with her to take care of him just as his own family was finally coming together. He hadn't seen Sansa and Arya in a number of months, and had just encountered the cousin he'd never met, Jon.

How could he just disappear now?

Robb loved Talisa dearly, but compared to his own family, he couldn't seem to put her on a higher pedestal than them.

"Heavy stuff…" the youngest commented, breaking the brief silence in the room; as she was one to do.

"There's one more thing." Robb began nervously, leaning forward and resting his elbows on his thighs. "She's late."

A look of uncertainty took Arya. "Late for what?"

Sansa stared at her sister in disbelief, "Arya, _come on_ …"

After a second, Arya's eyebrows nearly flew up her forehead. "OH!"

The older girl turned back to Robb. "Maybe that's reason enough to go with her. Did she leave already?"

"She did." Robb said. The last thing he wanted to hear was people telling him he had more reason to go, rather than stay. He sighed and averted his gaze to the rug.

"Looks like Robb's a little too late, too." Arya slapped her knee. When Robb's stare found her, she got serious again. "Well, Mother and Father always did want grandchildren."

"All he said is she's late. It doesn't necessarily mean she's pregnant." Sansa corrected.

"She's mad at me and hasn't responded to my calls or texts. Gods, what am I going to do…?" Robb wasn't asking anyone in particular, just expressing his woe.

"Well, you could have a little fun tonight." Arya suggested. When Robb and Sansa looked at her, she expanded on her point. "It's perfectly reasonable! Robb's never been the type to lock himself in his room for the entirety of an evening like he did yesterday. Just have some fun tonight while the opportunity's here. When Talisa comes back, sit her down and talk things out."

"Ooor you could follow her out to Volantis. That'd be the romantic thing to do." Sansa suggested an alternative, which she thought was infinitely better.

"This isn't some shitty romance film." The younger girl disapproved greatly. "I think she might need space after an argument. It _was_ an argument, right?"

Robb didn't reply right away. Instead, he grabbed his bowl from the coffee table and carried it to the kitchen sink. After pouring the remaining bit of food out, he turned on the garbage disposal for a few seconds. "I already told her I wasn't going to Volantis. I'll just be in the way there, and it's not like she even took my family into consideration."

"I can't believe she's _so_ at fault here." Sansa commented, "She's a sweet woman. I'm sure she just wanted a shoulder to lean on."

"She can lean on Robb's shoulder when she comes back." Arya dismissed. "Are you even seriously in a relationship with her?"

"Arya!" the other girl couldn't believe what she just heard.

"I'm just saying… Robb, I know you're not happy with a good girl. Maybe this was just the push you needed to move forward with your life."

Arya's words hung in the air. Neither Robb nor Sansa offered objection or approval to them. Mostly, Robb was ready to drop the issue. He'd dwelt on it enough since his talk with Talisa, anyway.

* * *

"Well, how do I look?"

Jon stared at Ygritte as she gave a quick spin in her dark red suit on his front step. She really did wear a suit, like she promised she would. She was also equipped with a dark golden tie, shiny black shoes, and a mask resembling that of a hawk.

He knew he'd never see her in a dress.

"You look fine." He told her with an innocent smile.

Ygritte wasn't pleased with the response. "You know nothing, Jon Snow." She commented, shaking her head.

"What? You do look fine." He said.

"You're supposed to give me compliment on compliment on compliment. Not just 'you look fine.'" The Wildling told him, quoting him in a way that implied he was a Neanderthal.

"Sorry."

"You'll never keep a woman the way you are."

"Well, good thing I don't have any to try holding onto right now." Jon countered.

"And what's this you're wearing?"

Jon stared down at his clothes. He'd chosen his slim fitting black blazer, slacks that were a little tighter fitting than most were, and his best dress shoes. His navy blue shirt was unbuttoned at the top, as he'd forgone wearing a tie tonight. An appropriately chosen white wolf mask rested on his head atop his tied-back hair.

"I look pretty good." Jon was pretty sure he'd catch an eye or two tonight.

"Oh, so you can give _yourself_ a compliment?"

"I guess so." The raven-haired man gave a small grin to his friend.

"… Let's get going. We're supposed to be there for seven, huh?"

"Yea. It's already ten past seven, though." Jon said, then locked his door and headed to his car with Ygritte.

* * *

Despite it being fairly hidden away from the city in the forest, the Stark summer home was filled with party guests tonight. There was a melodic yet bass-filled song playing softly that could be heard upon arrival, and many people were still arriving. Plenty of guests were dashing and beautiful, sporting the newest summer fashions and most expensive designers on the market tonight. And although it was a chance to show off how much money one had at their disposal, it wasn't as pretentious an affair as this might imply.

In fact, most everyone was jovial and excited under the influence of shots and wine. There was only a little gossip here and there from people flocking to their cliques, but overall it was an elegant ball.

The masks were plentiful and several were over-the-top. Some glittered, some shined, and some were positively divine. One girl entered with a mask of feathers, some that stood as high as the doorways in the mansion. Many of the men were undeniably debonair with theirs.

Of them, Robb had stood out under his grey wolf's mask for the time he was out mingling with the guests. It cut short just above his nose, revealing his recently-groomed beard. Presently, he was sitting on the balcony of his room and staring at the harvest moon hanging in the sky, his mask lying forgotten on the table near his drink. He wasn't exactly in a party mood right now, but Sansa had said Jon would arrive soon. That would surely make things better somehow.

He watched more and more guests arriving and parking in the driveway, and then the yard when there was no more room. Most of these people he didn't recognize. But he did know Margaery was here. He also happened to see Loras and Renly arriving. He smirked as they walked up the driveway and avoided being too close, despite their masks concealing their identities; Robb only recognized them from Renly's car. They were so afraid of being found out…

Some time went on, painfully uneventful. Robb was bored.

But the moment he saw Jon arrive with a friend, he nearly jumped from his seat. As he watched Jon coming up the driveway, he grew anxious. His Stark blood boiled for his cousin, and Robb knew needed to control himself before he did something he'd regret tonight.

Jon did look quite dashing in his suit and wolf mask. How could one walk around being so beautiful, even when masquerading? He was laughing with his redheaded friend on his way in. Robb almost mistook her for Sansa, but Sansa would never wear a suit when she could wear a glittering gown instead.

With great haste, Robb threw his mask on and nearly flew downstairs past the party-goers on the stairs. He saw Jon enter the house, only to be greeted by Arya—who decided to come as some Phantom of the Opera monstrosity tonight. (It was most likely her silent protest to this party.)

Robb was conflicted here. While he did want Jon to know just how glad he was to see him tonight, he didn't want to seem too eager. Every instinct he had was urging him forward, but he decided to flock to Renly and Loras for a bit to _seem_ preoccupied.

Loras nearly jumped when he noticed Robb standing next to him, "What the-"

"Talk to me about something." Robb said very tensely.

"About _what_?" Renly squinted under his mask.

"Anything!" the Stark pleaded. He looked out of the corner of his eye and saw Jon still talking to Arya. He had a drink in his hand now. _Good_ , Robb thought, grinning a bit.

"What the hell is going on?" Loras asked.

"Can you just do this _one_ thing for me?!" Robb whispered aggressively. He was honestly questioning his friendship with them by this point.

Renly and Loras stared at each other for a moment, both still very confused. Renly spoke first just as Robb swiped his drink and took a swig of it, "Soooo Robb, how's that girlfriend of yours?" he asked, sounding as if he was asking under duress.

Immediately following, Robb choked on the drink and dropped the glass to the floor, where it shattered to pieces. He braced himself on the island and knelt down to stop coughing. This commotion drew the eyes of everyone in the room.

"What is going on over here?" Sansa's voice came as she made her appearance in her glittering, golden gown. She was wearing a dove's mask that shimmered golden where the light touched it. A more beautiful lady could not be found here tonight.

Instinctively, she slapped Robb on the back a few times, and he waved his hand to tell her to stop.

Sansa turned her attention to the other two men. "What happened?"

"Your brother was being weird." Loras replied. Renly chuckled at the statement.

The young woman sighed. "Please keep an eye on him. If he's had too much to drink, take him to his room or something." She said.

Just as she finished speaking, her playlist was shifted to something far more bass-heavy with less than charming lyrical stylings. She whipped around and saw the culprit holding her cell phone: Arya.

"Arya!" she shouted, startling the girl. Arya showed her teeth awkwardly and put the phone down before fleeing the scene of the crime.

Before Sansa could do anything to counter this, most of her party guests were already dancing provocatively and rowdily to the music. Some were even singing along to the damn song. She stormed through the house after Arya to scold her when she inevitably found her.

Back in the kitchen, when Robb finally stopped coughing, he stood up and noticed his 'friends' were no longer with him. When he turned, his heart jumped when he saw Jon approaching with his friend at his side.

"Good evening, Lord Stark!" Jon said ever so formally. He'd spoken a bit loudly to be heard over the music.

"G-" Robb promptly cleared his throat, "Good evening to you, Lord Snow! And…"

"I'm Ygritte," Ygritte did a dramatic curtsey in her suit. "And I was just about to grab some food! Excuse me for a minute!" She said before slipping by Robb to the dinner table in the dining room that was filled with a variety of food trays.

"Mind if I get a drink?" Jon asked.

Robb shook his head and encouraged his cousin to take free reign of the kitchen bar. For a moment, he wondered if Jon had finished the drink he saw him with a few minutes ago already.

After looking the bar over, Jon avoided wine and mixed himself a drink that was less heavy on the alcohol and favored the soda more. He didn't want to get too drunk tonight. When he turned back to Robb, he offered him a taste of it.

Robb took the drink and looked at it carefully. He couldn't help but smile that Jon didn't mind sharing a drink with him. After taking a long sip, he handed it back to the other and nodded. "It's good."

"It's mostly soda." Jon grinned under his mask.

Before he knew what he was doing, Robb noticed his hand reach out and touch the white mask. He pulled it away and swallowed his saliva down. "Nice mask." He commented. It reminded him of the charm of Jon's he found and had so lovingly attached to his phone.

"Thank you. It wasn't expensive." The younger of the two revealed, unsure as to why he did.

"Care to go for a walk?" Robb said instinctively.

Jon gave a shrug and allowed Robb to lead him through the house and out the front door. The change in atmosphere was instantaneous. The loud music became muffled as soon as the front door closed behind them, and the night air was gentle and forgiving on their skin.

Robb loosened his tie a little as he started down the walkway. He felt a nervous sweat take him even in spite of the pleasant temperature. Jon was following him, and he could hear the ice of his drink knock against the sides of his glass as they walked. It was really the only sound he could hear, because apart from the occasionally gentle winds, the night was very quiet.

"Oh, I never showed you the labyrinth." He said, breaking the silence.

"I can see it from here." Jon commented.

It was towards the bottom of the hill and lit very dimly by the white string lights that had been hung above it. And even though it seemed they were hung for guests to visit the location, it was quite empty.

Jon took a sip from his drink, this time to cope with the anxiety gripping at him.

The two of them made it to the entrance of the labyrinth, which had walls of green that stood a few feet higher than either of them.

"Shall we?" Robb asked.

Jon took in a breath, "Yea, let's go." He nodded.

He let Robb lead the way, figuring he knew the layout of the place better than any. The walls were somewhat enclosed, just shy of evoking claustrophobia. But here and there, little flowers bloomed amid the leaves. The lights overhead weren't perfectly hung to have light hit every corner, or every path for that matter. More often than not, their light seemed to lead the labyrinth-goer towards the center. As they got closer, he could hear the sound of gently running water become clearer and clearer.

Robb could feel his palms start to sweat as they found the center, where a large stone fountain resided. Its four corners were spread far apart, and there was plenty of room from one to the next for seating. Overhead, the canopy of trees was open and the stars above sprinkled the sky in their subtle splendor; unaffected by the city lights miles down the road.

"I used to hate this place as a kid," Robb began as he knocked a small branch against the wall with a swift kick, "I got lost in here once and they didn't find me until well after it was dark." He grinned and turned to Jon.

"Now you could just climb the walls and get out if you got lost." Jon joked.

"I could." Robb took a seat on the fountain and stared up at the sky. "Did you hear back from Midland?"

Jon followed his cousin's example, but sat near him rather than far away. "I did. I got accepted. The first acceptance email I got was sent to a Jon Snow with an 'h' in his name."

Robb's eyes returned to his companion. "You've got a common name?"

"No, it was a clerical error. I like to think I'm pretty original." He smiled.

"You are." Robb said, then gave quick follow-up when Jon's eyes met his own, "I mean, from all the times we've spoken… You seemed different than anyone I ever knew."

"Thanks. You too."

Robb blushed, thankful of his own mask. "You have a girlfriend?" he subtly prodded.

"Why do you ask?" Jon countered cleverly.

Thinking quickly, Robb replied. "Well, your friend in the suit…"

This seemed to amuse Jon, who gave a quick laugh. "Ygritte and I aren't dating. I'm not dating anyone right now, really."

Robb was inwardly thanking the gods. "I see." Was all he said.

After taking the last swig of his drink, Jon set the glass down and turned to run his hand in the fountain water, effectively facing his cousin. A silence set in the air for a while before he spoke again. "Are you interested?"

Robb's bright eyes widened and his gaze met Jon's again. "What?" was all he managed to get out.

"In her? Are you interested in dating her?"

"I have a girlfriend, thanks." Robb tried to dismiss.

"She's not here tonight?"

"She had family business to take care of."

"Oh."

Robb stared at the lights for a second before he acted. He took off his mask and placed it beside him before squinting at Jon. "Hey, there's something in your hair." He said.

Jon seemed surprised, and quickly ran his hands over his tied back hair. "Is it gone?"

"No, it's…" Robb moved closer to Jon and gently grabbed his bearded jaw to turn his head a little. With a grin, he pulled the tie out and watched the curly raven locks fall to Jon's shoulders. He carefully ran his fingers through it, feeling how soft it was; oh, how he always wanted to have this feeling. "There, it's gone." He said as he dropped the hair tie into the fountain where it belonged.

Jon noticed Robb hadn't let go of his jaw. "Robb-"

Said man withdrew his hand, only to remove Jon's mask. "Your hair is beautiful, Jon. Don't hide it."

The running water quickly became the only sound to be heard as Jon stared at Robb with uncertainty. He never noticed until now that Robb had a larger frame than he did, even if it wasn't larger by a lot. The look his cousin was giving him was unmistakably amorous.

His nervousness made him break eye contact. Jon wasn't often the type to back down or hide away, but when in the presence of Robb Stark, he felt he had no choice. When he felt those eyes still staring, he tried to say something. Anything, really. "Robb-"

"Please," Robb interrupted, and he spoke nervously but heatedly, "Please don't hate me for this, Jon." He said as he moved closer. After taking the other by the back of the head, he gently pulled him closer and connected their lips. Jon's were soft and moist, as he always expected them to be. He took advantage of Jon's mouth, open from shock, and slipped as much of his tongue inside it as he could. Jon smelled of alcohol, and he had the faint taste on his breath as well. But Robb didn't care. He would take this man any way he came because he knew by now that he was in love with him.

Jon couldn't move, utterly frozen in a startled kiss. He knew this was coming. He'd have to be a fool to not know. Even so, it didn't mean this was any less of a shock to him as it unfolded before his eyes.

Robb's eyes were closed as he kissed him, and Jon wanted to push him away. But more than anything, he wanted Robb to _continue_ kissing him. Robb was just so easy to talk to, and he was perhaps one of the most handsome men his own age that Jon knew. It was so hard to resist him, and by the same flip of the coin, so easy to submit to him.

His brown eyes slowly closed, etching the fading sight of Robb into the resulting darkness. While he didn't return Robb's kiss, he resigned to allow it to continue. He felt jolts of energy running him through as Robb's thumb caressed his cheek. Jon had never felt so vulnerable before, but he also never felt this safe.

He could feel himself growing erect as each second of this enchanting moment passed.

"I've wanted to kiss you since I met you." Robb breathed into his mouth, sending shivers up his spine. What was he doing to him to breed all these feelings?

Jon was reminded just how _real_ an experience this was when he felt Robb's hand glide up his thigh to rest on his clothed cock. A gentle squeeze brought him back to reality, and he tried to push Robb away. He found out in that moment that Robb was stronger than he was.

Robb did pull away from Jon after he felt him resisting, though not immediately after.

"Robb, you can't…" Jon said when his mouth was finally free of the other man's.

"Look at me and tell me you don't want me." Robb ordered.

Jon met Robb's gaze and he showed how uncomfortable he was on his handsome face. "I don't want you to..." he trailed off, unable to even say it.

"I would make you happy, Jon. I'd protect you from people like Greyjoy, or the world. Just say the word and we could be-"

"Stop it!" Jon demanded, then stood up. "Just stop…" He was conflicted. But he knew this felt wrong, which was enough reason to call it to end. Robb was with another, and on top of that, they were blood relatives. There could be no future for them like Robb wanted.

Never.

"Thanks for having me here. But it's time for me to go. Please… just… keep your distance…" He continued. The resulting hurt look that Robb gave pierced his heart like a knife, but even so, he left him there on the edge of the fountain. He could find his way out of here on his own now that he'd been guided through it.

Robb watched Jon go for a second, frozen by the rejection he'd just faced. He jumped up when Jon disappeared into the labyrinth again, then followed after him.

"Jon, wait! PLEASE!" he begged, his voice carried heavily on the night air.

When he got out of the labyrinth, he saw Jon meeting up with his friend in the driveway. Before he could chase after them, he heard one of the last voices in the world he wanted to hear right now.

"Robb, what's the meaning of this?!" Ned's deep and almost wrathful voice came from the yard.

The young Stark turned and saw his Lord Father and his Lady Mother getting out of their car. He didn't know whether he should chase Jon, who was now heading to his own car, or reply to his parents, who were approaching him.

"Shit," he cursed lowly, standing there as stiff as a statue. By the time he made his decision, Jon had pulled out of the driveway and his parents were upon him with their confused and disapproving stares.

So much for things getting better tonight...


	6. an untrustworthy wolf

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy holidays everyone!

While his father paced the living room, offering lecture, Robb couldn't help but feel a growing and near deafening silence. His father's lips were moving, but he was becoming less and less able to hear the words that were coming from them. He was in this predicament because he'd covered for Sansa, taking full responsibility for the party thrown.

No doubt, Catelyn was likely speaking with Sansa in this early hour. Because while Ned believed Robb when he said it was his doing, Cat knew a masquerade was something only Sansa would orchestrate. Even so, Robb felt it was the least he could do for her since he was otherwise occupied while she essentially got everything ready on her own.

Arya, Bran, and Rickon were still sleeping, as was the sun. They were the innocents in all of this. Although Arya did help Sansa by picking up things for the party…

"Are you listening to me? Robb, you're the oldest and you have to be thinking about the family image even when you're not with your mother and myself. Throwing a house party because you're in charge and unsupervised is something teenagers do. You're not a teenager anymore, son." Ned said as his pacing came to an end and he headed into the kitchen. "I expect you to clean this house from top to bottom. I found vomit all over the main bathroom this morning, so start there." He instructed before pouring himself a fresh cup of coffee.

Robb stood up from the couch and headed to the hallway, but his father called out to him, stopping him.

"Yes?" the young wolf said.

Ned sipped his coffee before speaking. His eyes didn't leave the newspaper he'd spotted on the countertop as he spoke, "I left a present in your room."

Eyebrow cocked in curiosity and confusion, Robb carried on. "Alright…"

Before Robb went to the bathroom, he went up to his room and saw a dog lying on his bed, curled up and sleeping near the pillows. Robb's brow furrowed as he entered his room and took a seat on the bed. Reaching out, he ran his hand along its soft fur. When it woke, he saw that it was not a small dog, but a Direwolf pup.

His blue eyes couldn't have gone wider at the realization.

A Direwolf as a present?

* * *

Some time into the day, just past noon to be exact, with a bundle of fur in arms, Sansa carried her own Direwolf pup down the large hill to the lake where she'd seen her siblings going to earlier. Lady, she had named her. Lady was a small and pretty pup, delicate and eager to be with her new owner whenever the opportunity arose.

Sansa had become quite enamored with the pup within minutes of finding her in a basket beside her bed this morning. It was an odd thing to receive a gift like this after she'd thrown a party without her parents' consent, but she wasn't exactly complaining about it.

When she reached the lake, she found her siblings all hanging about, spending their time together under the sun.

Robb, who was floating in the lake on a tube, waved at his sister when he saw her arrive. It was the first time he'd laid eyes on her today, and mentally, she seemed rather untouched by the relentlessly served parental frustration and disappointment. He owed her that much, at least.

Sansa took a seat next to Arya on a sprawled out towel and placed Lady down beside her.

Robb could see the girls talking about their Direwolves, probably about how different they both were. Arya's Direwolf, Nymeria, was restless; had been all morning that he'd seen it. The Direwolf Sansa had brought was calm, obedient, and seemed attached to her at the waist.

Off in a field somewhere, he knew Rickon was running rampant with his wolf, Shaggydog; likely the least tame of the bunch. Bran was sitting beneath the oak tree, playing a portable video game as his wolf, Summer, rested contently on his lap.

Robb eventually paddled himself closer to shore where he could speak to his siblings and also keep a closer eye on Greywind, who was lying down near Arya. "I got to spend my morning cleaning." He told Sansa when she was in earshot.

Said girl sucked air in through her teeth. "I'm so sorry… I really didn't think they'd get here so soon. I did clean up the house as best I could last night before going to sleep, though." Truly, she had. The vomit in the bathroom was something she intended to see to this morning, but when she went to, she found that Robb had already taken care of it.

"I didn't have to clean a thing, _and_ I got to drink last night." Arya said proudly.

"When you get to be legal drinking age, it's really not as big a deal as you think it is." Sansa replied. She recently turned twenty-one, so she'd lived through that whole drunken night already.

"Hey, where did Father find these Direwolves?" Robb asked.

"Bran said they found them somewhere outside the castle at Winterfell." Arya replied. "Six of them, to be exact."

Sansa turned to her sister. "Six? I only saw five so far…"

"Father's keeping the sixth one in his and Mother's room, that's why. I saw it, it was white all over." The younger girl said.

"Who's he going to give it to? Is he going to keep it?" Robb asked.

"Dunno." Arya shrugged. "But I figure it'd be a good present for Jon."

Robb's heart skipped a beat at that name. "O-oh, yeah. You're right."

"You know, I heard him speaking on the phone this morning. I think he was talking to him." Sansa recalled as she pulled out her own cell phone to take pictures of Lady for Snapchat.

Before Robb could reply, his eyes caught sight of someone coming down the hill. He swallowed his saliva as he saw his love, Jon, in a tank top, shorts, and flip flops approaching. He nearly flipped out of his tube to get out of the water.

Arya and Sansa turned and smiled at Jon.

"Welcome back!" Arya greeted. "You missed a good scolding, I hear."

"Yea, because you were too busy sleeping like a baby." Sansa countered. "Hello, Jon. Nice to see you again."

Jon smiled at the girls, and seemed surprised when both of them got up to hug him. Robb watched from afar, having given up on getting out of the water. When he was finally met with Jon's gaze, he didn't know what to do. Jon offered a brief wave.

Robb nodded in his direction and returned the wave.

"We were literally just talking about you." Sansa said with a smile.

"Really?" Jon grinned. "All good, I hope."

"Just saying how all the girls were fawning over you at the party last night." Arya commented.

While Jon was distracted by the girls, Robb slipped into the water and then tossed his tube to the shallow end before swimming back to land. Greywind sprinted over to him, eager to see his master out of the water again. When he reached him, Robb grabbed the pup under his arm and pretended to be taking him to the house.

He was glad to see the others were too preoccupied to question him.

Unsure of what to do with Jon here, he knew the safest place was his bedroom. So when he got inside, he rushed to it, and once inside, closed the door and placed Greywind on the bed.

Robb wasn't ready for Jon right now. Or, more precisely, he wasn't ready to see Jon the morning after he kissed him and groped him in the garden labyrinth. Thinking back, he also recalled telling Jon he could make him happy, as if a relationship was an option.

He just couldn't talk to Jon…Not with the girls and the rest of the family around, anyway. What was he doing here?

He ran a hand over his wet hair, pulling it back and letting some of the water run down his shoulders for a moment before finding a towel to start drying it with. After wrapping one around his head, he switched his television on as well as his Playstation to load up Netflix—one of his favorite pastime apps. It wasn't long into doing this that he heard the alarm for the front door chime and the sounds of his siblings coming into the house.

After taking a seat on the bed, Greywind coming over to him to rest against his thigh, he picked a show and let it play. Robb soon found himself curled up with his pup, stroking the fur on his head gently. If only he hadn't done something so stupid last night…

* * *

Sitting on the couch with the notably large remote in-hand, Jon flipped through the stations trying to find something to keep his boredom at bay. He stared down at the white Direwolf pup beside him, given to him as a loving welcome to the family present by his Lord Uncle Eddard.

Jon hadn't planned on stopping by anytime soon, but when he received a personal call from Ned, he felt he had little choice in the matter. And this went further than he expected it to. After giving him Ghost, a name Jon chose that he felt fit the wolf pup, Ned extended him an invitation to stay at his summer home. Had it been over the phone, maybe Jon could have wiggled his way out of it. But something about Ned's presence in-person was too hard to deny.

It was much easier with Robb, who extended the same invitation… though with motives which were damn near overtly sexually wanting.

When he heard a door open upstairs, he turned and waited for whomever it was to come out. His heart took a noticeable increase in beat when he saw Robb come to the top of the stairs. He made to speak, but found that no words would come to him.

Robb descended the stairs, seeming as if he was looking for someone.

"Hey, I didn't realize anyone else was here. Where is everyone?" the Stark asked. His Direwolf pup came dashing down the stairs too, and found his way to Ghost, jumping up on the couch to play with him.

"The girls said they had plans in town with some friends. I didn't want to intrude on that… And your parents took the boys to lunch and… they mentioned they wanted to do some shopping for school." Jon told him.

"Oh, heh, sorry you got stuck here with me…" Robb joked a little, trying to relieve the tension and nervousness he was feeling, "I promise I won't be too much of a bother." he said.

Jon offered a smile, "You're not bothering me… It's actually good to have some company. I was getting a little bored with the thousand channels that have nothing to watch on them."

Robb didn't reply right away, as he was carefully thinking about what he wanted to say to address the elephant in the room. "Hey, I—uh, I'm sorry about… last night…" he rubbed the back of his neck for a second as he spoke. "I had a lot to drink and… I know that's no excuse, but…I am sorry."

"It's fine, Robb." Jon assured him, then petted Greywind to stop him from being too rough with Ghost. Greywind started play biting Jon's hand, encouraging the young Snow to play with him more.

Hearing those words, and the sound of his name on Jon's breath, did something to Robb that he wasn't sure how to handle, so he changed the subject. "I was going to order a pizza or something, if you want to share."

"Oh, that sounds good to me."

"Any particular toppings you want?"

"I don't really fancy olives, mushrooms, or pineapples on pizza." Was Jon's simple reply.

"So a pizza with nothing but olives, mushrooms, and pineapples, you said?" Robb grinned when he saw Jon chuckle and shake his head.

"The raccoons wouldn't even eat a pizza like that."

"I bet they would." Robb said.

"Fine, order it and we'll see."

Pulling the app up on his phone, Robb started placing an order for a pepperoni pizza with onions and jalapeno peppers, and then one for a pizza with Jon's least favorite toppings on it. "We _will_ see." He said.

"Hey Robb," Jon called, drawing those oceanic eyes from the phone's semi-bright screen.

"Yeah?"

"I didn't mean… I didn't mean I never wanted to see you again when I said… well… I'm… It's good to be with you and your family." Jon admitted. Robb stared at him, and the other turned his gaze away. "I'll be spending a few nights here. Your father convinced me."

"My father did?"

"Yea."

While this news would have come as a delight to Robb less than twenty-four hours ago, now he wasn't sure how to feel or what this could mean. Though, he had to admit he was glad Jon was finally going to be around. "We don't have an extra room, unless you're gonna sleep in here…"

Jon took a brief look around the spacious living room. "I'm fine with that." He said.

Robb finally made his way into the living room and grabbed up Greywind from the couch, "I mean, not to be forward or anything, but you'd probably be better off in my room. There's an air mattress you could use. It's better than being woken up by my mother and father every morning, or anyone else for that matter."

Jon took in a slow breath and didn't respond immediately. "I don't want to invade your space like that."

"It's fine. I've got more than enough room."

"…Alright." Jon agreed, still feeling wary of his handsome cousin and his intentions.

* * *

_"Oh in my heart, heart I'm unhinged for you, babe. In my heart, heart I'm unhinged for you, babe. Oh, I see the way, the way you wait for me. And I see... I'm unhinged for you…" – Unhinged by Merriment_

* * *

The sun had long since begun its fall from the sky, allowing the evening stars to start appearing and the moon to cast increasingly noticeable light. The wind blew on the trees, the owls hooted their dark songs, and as nature carried on, the Stark home was near silent.

Apart from the sounds of a television program playing softly in the house, and the gentle hum of the air conditioner, the house was hushed.

Pizza crusts lay forgotten on the plates that were set on Robb's bedside table. The sodas in the glasses were both half gone. In the darkened room, Robb felt himself slipping into sleep. Jon had succumbed to it some time ago, lying comfortably on his side, facing his cousin.

When Robb heard a bang coming from his television, he near jumped.

The new HBO series, Westrworld, was playing.

Robb quickly grabbed the remote and turned the volume down a bit, then his eyes found their way to Jon. They ran his form over, noting the curvature of his hip, his muscular arms, his wildly curly hair, his beautiful sleeping face…

This was almost too good to be true. It _had_ to be a dream.

The Gods were cruel in their delights.

The young Stark pinched himself, finding pain at the sensation. It was no dream. Jon was here, in his bed, and ripe for the taking.

Still, Robb let his relationship with Talisa weigh on his mind, halting him for only a moment before he reached out and rested his hand on Jon's bicep. His skin was smooth to the touch.

Heart pounding, he glided his hand up Jon's arm and then tangled his fingers in those ebony curls. Moving in closer with the caution and attentiveness of a feline, he touched his nose against Jon's cheek to feel him out. Jon remained asleep without so much as a stir. Robb looked his handsome face over again, thereby earning the courage he needed to briefly press his lips against Jon's.

The second that contact was made, Robb experienced a feeling on a new level of stimulation. The rush he got at the thought of Jon waking to find him doing this, or what he might do in response… it was enough to make him take in a shaky breath.

This danger… he knew that he'd never felt with Talisa before. Even if she were not in the picture, it would remain where Jon was concerned. There was just something about him specifically that fueled this awakening in him…

"Jon," he called, near whispering.

When he got no response, he called again.

This time, Jon's eyes slowly fluttered open and he took in a quick breath at finding Robb so close to him. He looked positively confused.

"Robb? What are you doing?" he asked.

"Can I kiss you?" Robb boldly asked… like he hadn't stolen kisses from Jon already…

Jon sat up, supporting his weight on his arm. "What did you just ask me?" he squinted as he spoke.

"I really want to kiss you, but I won't if you don't want me to." A lie. Robb would take and take what he wanted from Jon until he said 'yes'.

"Wha—I thought you were sorry about last night." Confusion was likely being steered towards anger or irritation, Robb could sense it.

"I am." Robb confirmed, "But I'm _not_ sorry about wanting you, Jon. That's why I'm asking your permission first. Just… let me kiss you. That's all I want to do."

"Robb-"

"You came back. After last night when you said for me to keep my distance, you came back here."

Jon's brow furrowed, "I was invited by your father. I wasn't going to just say no, especially when he said he had something he wanted to give me in person."

"But still, you came knowing _I'd_ be here. Did you want to see me again?"

"No, that's not why I came."

"Did you _want_ to see me again?" Robb asked again, moving closer to his cousin, offering little to no caution.

"Maybe. I was confused and angry about what you did… But you're not a bad guy. I don't hate you or anything, I just didn't want…"

"Can I kiss you?"

Jon shook his head and made to get off the bed, but Robb grabbed his wrist and held him in place.

"Robb, it's not right to you or your girlfriend. Remember her?"

"Of course I do. But she and I aren't…" The auburn-haired man trailed off with a sigh, "I honestly don't know what's going on with us. It's complicated… All I do know is I feel strongly about you, and I want to spend time with you."

"That's what we were doing!"

"Time… like this…" Robb began as he forced Jon down onto the pillows, pinning a hand above his head. "Just tell me I can kiss you. I'll make you fall in love with me with just one."

"That's the craziest thing I-" Jon jumped when Robb closed the space between them, connecting their lips. Unlike last night, he wasn't frozen. He'd become accustomed to Robb's forcefulness, and used his free hand to push at him. But… damn it if he didn't have the softest lips Jon ever tasted. Eventually, he surrendered and cautiously ran his hand up Robb's back. It was so confusing because he could admit he was attracted to Robb, but the reasons not to act on that attraction were considerable...

Even so, he enjoyed this kiss. No denying the truth. Right and wrong were effectively and temporarily flung out the window…

Robb grinned against Jon's lips, releasing his hand when he knew he'd won him over. He licked at Jon's lips and was easily granted entry. When he was, he practically stuck his tongue down Jon's throat.

Jon used his newly freed hand to take a gentle hold of Robb's arm, and the other he used to pull him closer. Their stomachs collided, as well as their groins in the heat of this moment. Robb made sure Jon's legs were spread open for him to rest between as they kissed. Instinctively, he ran a hand down Jon's stomach and past his waistband. Just when his fingers wove through Jon's pubic hair, he felt the other grab his arm.

Jon pulled away from the kiss and stared into Robb's eyes. "You said _a kiss_."

"I…" Robb paused, then grinned at his own defeat, "You're right."

The younger half-smirked and pulled Robb close to him, "I'm not in love, by the way." He whispered right into his ear.

Robb laughed a little. "I only said that so you'd let me kiss you. Love takes time, but…"

Jon raised a curious eyebrow, "But?" he echoed.

"I wouldn't mind if you were in love."

"You're optimistic, Stark."

"…Can we do this again sometime?" Robb asked, after running the question over in his mind a few times. He didn't' want to seem too eager like a child, but it needed to be asked. "I really enjoy your company." He pulled back to make eye contact again. He knew Jon must have seen the lust in his eyes.

Jon sighed, "I don't know."

"Did you like it?"

"I did, but you're not weirded out by us being related?"

Robb shrugged. "Not really. You're a beautiful man and you're just as sweet as any woman ever was to me, if not more. I can see past the relative bit."

"I see…"

"You liked it, though." The Stark grinned, elated that Jon admitted he enjoyed kissing him.

"Well, you're handsome and charming. It's not like it was difficult to." Jon confessed. "But-"

"I meant it, Jon."

"Huh? …You meant what?"

Robb closed his eyes. "I'd make you happy, if you let me." He spoke, his cheek pressed against Jon's firm chest.

"How could I trust you to say that when you're doing _this_ with _me_ even though you have a girlfriend?"

"Ouch…"

"You're not trustworthy, Lord Stark."

"Make a trustworthy man out of me then, Snow." Robb felt he was losing here. Jon had called him out and didn't seem thrilled about the opportunity to spend this kind of time together in the future. He'd almost thrown in the towel on wooing Jon until he felt his fingers running through his hair.

"Someday I might. But today, you've got someone else to be like this with."

"I'd rather it be you." Robb opened his eyes and stared up at Jon. "I really do."

Jon shook his head with a grin at his hopeless cousin. When Robb moved forward and kissed him again, he returned it without so much as a second thought.

* * *

Sometime later in the night.

"What's going on over there?" Sansa asked as she approached the house and disarmed the alarm, unknowingly alerting Robb and Jon that they needed to move to more appropriate activities.

"Look, Nymeria found an empty pizza box." Arya replied as she carried it from around the house to the front step. "Did you have pizza at the party?"

"Masquerade," the redhead corrected as she unlocked the door, "And no. Must've been Robb and Jon."

Arya entered the house after her sister. "I wonder if they're getting on alright." She commented.


	7. a taste

 

The sky had only just begun to light with the sun's warm glow as Robb turned onto his side in bed, facing his balcony doors where the curtains were drawn back. Though the soft light peaking on the horizon was not enough to wake him, the sound of his alarm suddenly chiming fully drew the young Stark from his sleep.

He desperately searched under his pillows for his phone to shut the alarm off, as it was increasing in volume every few seconds. After locating and silencing the nuisance, Robb sat up on his arms and looked around his room. He'd forgotten himself for just a moment; forgotten who he'd fallen asleep with last night.

Looking over the side of his bed, he saw that Jon had already departed for class—which began today. Jon had told Robb that he had a studio class that started at 8 am and ran to 10:45 am, while  _Robb's_  classes began at 11 am. Since he'd stayed up for quite some time later than Jon, naturally, he woke up later than his cousin.

Robb fell onto his pillow, realizing he needed to get ready for his lecture. He closed his eyes and breathed rhythmically, feeling as if he could still smell Jon here in his room. Greywind and Ghost were sleeping soundly on a large cushion in the corner. They could sleep together so easily, unlike Jon and Robb.

Even though it had been a few days since they'd been sharing Robb's room, Jon had yet to share his  _bed_. He seemed content using the air mattress each night and deflating it to store it in the closet each morning. Robb had tried to encourage him to sleep with him and even promised nothing would happen, but Jon remained steadfast in his decision. It was prudent on his part, as he knew Robb would never be able to keep to himself if they slept under the same sheets.

When he felt himself slipping back into sleep, Robb's eyes snapped open and he eventually forced himself off the pillow. Deciding to forgo taking a shower, he got out of bed and headed to his closet to pick out his clothes for the day.

* * *

With his ebony curls tied back in a tight bun, Jon sat on his stool meticulously scratching pencil to paper. The instructor arrived about fifteen minutes late, claiming he just had a surprise meeting with a board member.

Jon hadn't minded the idle time, though. While a few of the students in the large class conversed, he spent his time sketching out some things he hoped he'd be able to construct this semester. Though, when the instructor started going over the syllabus, he felt his attention start to drift.

Beyond the abundantly large and surprisingly bright classroom, beyond the campus, beyond the city, and hidden away in the forest, stood the Stark summer home; where his family resided. In truth, he'd been thinking about his family a lot lately.

How could he not?

He'd come here this morning with Sansa, since they both had classes starting at 8 am. She rambled on about how she didn't really want to attend class this morning. Jon advised her against skipping, and told her she should be eager to attend. She didn't seem too fond of that, but to Jon's surprise, she didn't offer any rebuttal. Perhaps she just couldn't bring herself to be mean to him.

Arya assured them she would be attending class as well, meaning the three eldest Stark children would be here this year.

Jon stared out the window at the blue sky, letting his mind flirt with the idea of sleeping with Robb. While he felt it a good decision to deny Robb's offer, that didn't mean he didn't secretly regret it. Jon was practically consumed with the idea of Robb.

As the eldest Stark child, he would inherit Winterfell and all of the great North someday. He was a charming and kind fellow, who seemed to follow his heart quite often; not the best trait of a future leader, but one that was romantic at its core. Jon could already tell that of all the Stark children, either Sansa or Arya had stolen the wits in the family. Robb was far too candid to be cunning, which was a great quality to have. And it was something Jon admired. All the qualities he saw in his cousin, he saw in himself as well. This is why he knew they would get on.

Well, that among other things…

Taking a glance down at his sketchbook, Jon grinned at the sight of the doodle of Robb on the corner of his page. While it was just a quick one, it captured Robb well, emphasizing his wild curls, his pronounced brow, his thick lips, and overall handsome appearance.

A fellow with wildly orange hair and a sizable beard to match it looked at him from across the table and noticed him admiring his sketch. Jon casually closed his sketch book and offered a smile, primarily to hide the awkwardness he was feeling. He wondered just how long things could go on like this before he caved…

"Doodling someone special?" the bearded redhead asked.

"An original character." Jon replied, then took to tinkering with the tools on the table. Were these out for them to explore?

"What's his name?"

"It's… Bob."

The other grinned. "Kind of boring, no?"

A bit blunt with his words, but truly, he had a point. This led Jon down a mental path of differentiating the name Bob from Robb.

"What's your name?"

Jon took this moment to make mental observations about this person. His hair, previously noted as wildly untamed, was a red so bright Jon wondered where he came from. Even his cousin's hair wasn't  _this_  bright, and she was part Tully.

His eyes, so piercing and bright, offered insight to his bold and overwhelming character. His stature wasn't anything Jon had seen from a proper lord or lordling... And finally, his clothes were older; definitely quite worn. A dark flannel shirt and ripped blue jeans to boot…

A Widling descendant…

"Jon Snow. And you?" he said, offering his hand across the table.

"Tormund Giantsbane." The man said, proud and assertive.

If Jon had just asked his name first, he'd have known his background immediately…

"Nice to meet you."

"Same to you. Can't wait to see what a proper Lord like you will be able to make." Tormund told him. It seemed almost slighting the way he said it…

Even so, Jon took it in stride. He never considered himself a lord even with his parentage suggesting he was… or  _would be_  someday. Lords were fellows like his noble father Rhaegar, his honorable uncle Eddard, his dashing cousin Robb. He was just a normal guy with a bastard's surname to hide his identity from the King.

And for now, that's all he needed to be.

* * *

"Is it weird that we're eating together?" Arya asked Jon before grabbing and eating some fries from her plate.

She and Jon were seated in a well-lit corner of the cafeteria, which was becoming more and more packed as lunch went on. Normally, Arya would seek out her friends, Gendry, Hot Pie, or Lommy. But today she wanted to hang with Jon for a while. He was new here and had been sitting alone when she got to the cafeteria, so, ever the good cousin, she decided to give him some company.

"I don't think so." Jon grinned, and then took a sip from his glass of tea. "Why? Is it because we're family?"

"No, I just… Well, maybe. Anyway, you got any buddies here?"

The young Snow nodded, "A few."

"Well, that's all you really need are a few good ones." Arya offered a smile, truly believing those words.

"And you?"

"Samesies. Just a few good ones." Her dark eyes found their way to her sister, who was approaching with Robb close behind. "Unlike  _some_  people, I don't need to be popular."

Jon smiled at Sansa, then locked eyes with Robb for a second before the two of them took a seat next to him.

"What?" Sansa raised an eyebrow. "What are you going on about?"

"Nothiiiing." The younger sang.

"Jon, how was your art class?" Robb asked as he began eating the burger he got.

"It was just an intro to the class today. We'll be getting into the work next time, though." Jon replied. He was completely avoiding the sexual tension, as this was an incredibly public location. Not to mention Sansa and Arya were both seated across the table from them.

Robb grinned as he chewed, knowing exactly what Jon was going through. "Sounds hard."

"Not at all. We can't sit around next class for near three hours doing nothing."

After swallowing his food and drinking his soda, Robb stared at him, "Need a hand with anything?"

"I'll be fine." Jon told him, then damn near felt his soul leave his body when Robb brushed their legs together.

The girls were completely oblivious, as was the rest of the world. Still, it was inappropriate and he moved his leg away from his cousin's before turning away from him a little. "How were your classes?" he asked the girls, who had sparked up a conversation of their own.

Sansa looked as if she had the biggest amount of gossip, "Well, not to spread rumors, but I heard there's been some foul play going on in the locker rooms with one of the-"

"Boring." Arya interrupted, swiping a crouton from the other girl's salad.

" _How_  is that boring? You don't even know what I was going to say."

"Yeah, but I  _know_  it was boring."

Icy blue eyes rolled. "Sorry we're not all doing stupid parkour moves off the back of someone's obnoxiously oversized truck and breaking our bones."

"That happened  _once_."

Jon realized he probably wasn't about to get much out of the girls. When they were together, he noticed, there was a very real love-hate-love relationship going on between them. It was always pretty interesting to watch, but he needed them to pay attention to him so Robb would be less bold…

"Hey Jon, you should do a sculpture of me." Robb grinned. "Nude." He mouthed the last part.

When Jon's cheeks and ears turned a red so true they could put a cherry to shame, he couldn't help but grin even more. How was it he was getting away with this in broad daylight?

"I have to go." Jon said, getting up with his tray and trying his best not to seem embarrassed. "I'll see you lot back at the house."

"Alright. Hope the rest of your classes go well." Sansa said, waving him off.

"Yeah, see ya lover boy." Arya called as he left.

Jon refused to look at Robb, but Robb was satisfied. It was far too easy to get under his soft skin.

When Jon had gone, Sansa turned to Arya. "How'd you even get here today? Who brought you?" she asked suspiciously.

"No one." The younger girl replied.

* * *

It wasn't long after all the Stark children's classes ended that they all found their way back to the family summerhouse. Jon was the last to arrive, as his classes ended some time near 4 PM, while everyone else's ended at 2.

Robb had been eagerly waiting for him to get home, resting near the lake in the sun-spotted shade. Every time he had to wait for Jon, it was like waiting for Christmas on Christmas Eve.

When he saw his cousin arrive and enter the house for a while, he figured maybe he got caught talking to his father or something, as it took him a while to figure out Robb was out here.

Just when he was about to get up to go find him, Jon came out of the house in much more breathable clothes, his hair pulled back a bit by the glasses atop his head. There was no one cuter than him right now; there simply couldn't be.

"I was going to wait for you at school but I got bored so I came home." Robb admitted when Jon reached him. Jon decided on standing and staring out at the lake, while he returned to lying on his back.

"That would've been kind, but I wouldn't ask you to." Jon told him.

"Do you want me to?"

Jon turned and looked out at the mountains, further avoiding staring down at Robb. "I can't tell you what to do. Besides, I can see you when I get home." he said.

"Were you excited on the drive?"

"Not at all. There was so much traffic."

"Liar."

"There  _was_  traffic." Jon insisted. He wouldn't make that up.

"I mean you were excited to get back here and see me."

"Believe what you will."

Robb smiled and sat up on his arm. Jon was such a tease it was ridiculous. "Someday soon, Jon, I'm gonna have you moaning my name and cumming like a fire hydrant." he said, speaking with a confidence and forwardness he hadn't mustered in ages. He was upfront with Talisa when he was pursuing her, and that led to something special. But here, with Jon, he thought he might find something even more special. Plus, he never said anything that sexual to a lady like her when giving chase.

Jon turned and finally met his gaze. "You wish. That'll never happen, Robb."

"We'll see about that." The Stark said, nodding defiantly.

"We won't see about that."

"We'll see if we won't see about that."

Brown eyes cut Robb's way. "Real mature."

"I try sometimes." Robb couldn't help but smile some more. This was where he knew things were different with Jon than they had been with anyone he'd ever been with or even liked. He was here joking and smiling like he didn't have a care in the world, and it was so easy.

"You try too hard."

"Speaking of hard…" Robb ran his hand down his clothed semi and grabbed it.

"Alright, think I'm gonna go… read or watch TV or something." Jon said.

Getting up, Robb got closer to Jon, "Come with me to the labyrinth over there. Where we can't be seen…"

Jon's eyes locked with Robb's, and he felt himself unable to deny him even when he knew this wasn't going to lead anywhere good. "Uh, just for a minute…" he obliged.

It took them no longer than that to get over there and out of plain sight. Once inside and certain the cover of tall green walls would keep any prowling eyes at bay, Robb eased Jon against the wall and connected their lips in a tender kiss. He felt a tingle in the pit of his stomach when Jon's hands sailed up and down his back.

"Want to see it?" he asked, his lips still pressed against the other man's.

"For a second. But no longer." Jon's gaze was heavy with desire, yet he was holding back. He was always holding back in moments like these.

Even so, 'a second' was good enough for Robb. It meant he  _wanted_  to see it.

He pulled his shorts down and let his erection out for Jon. He smiled when those dark eyes slowly and shyly made their way down to it.

"Don't be scared to look." He told him, then took Jon's wrist and guided his hand to it. The second it made contact, he felt as if lightning was pulsing through him. They stood like that for a moment; Robb's eyes closed and Jon's hand wrapped around his dick. Jon stroked him gently, earning muffled moans as a result. "Gods…" Robb whispered.

When he felt Jon's thumb run over the tip, and then proceed to coat the head of his dick with his own precum, he thought he might explode right then and there. Chancing a glance down, he saw Jon slowly pull his thumb away, a string of his precum still connecting it to his throbbing member.

He took in a quick breath when he brought his thumb up to his lips and used his tongue to clean it in a matter of seconds.

"Jon," Robb nearly panted, "I might fuck you through the earth if you keep this up."

"I haven't done much." Jon said, then moved forward and lovingly pressed his lips against Robb's bottom lip. "Also… your minute's up." And with that, he slipped out of Robb's proximity and waited for him to make himself decent again.

"What. Wait, but-" the Stark nearly felt his heart beat from his chest, "Can't I see yours?"

"Not today, Robb. Besides, I still feel kind of bad doing this behind Talisa's back… Are you really okay with this?"

Robb truly had no response to that. He hadn't even been thinking about her during all of this. All he could think about was Jon. Jon was consuming him inside and out and he wouldn't be able to go on for long without mutual release. "Share my bed tonight. I promise it'll be… uh… PG-13."

"Oh please, knowing you it'll go from rated G to X in a matter of seconds." Jon remarked.

After tucking himself under his waistband, and noticing how wet his lower stomach was becoming as a result, Robb sighed. There was nothing worse than having blue balls…

But tonight, oh tonight he was getting that sweet release from Jon. He just knew it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Hey there everyone! Just so you know, I haven't forgotten this story or any of my others (if you follow those). I still have plans for these two Starks, so have no worries! I hope you enjoyed the update!


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